'Mr. DWI' Arrested After 34th Drunk Driving Violation: ABI Says War on Drunk Driving Should Focus on True Cause - Alcohol Abuse

WASHINGTON, Dec. 17, 2004 -- A 63-year-old South Dakota man was arrested this weekend after he failed to appear in court for his 34th Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) violation. As law enforcement agencies across the nation kick off annual holiday roadblock campaigns, the American Beverage Institute (ABI) declared that "Mr. DWI" represents what is wrong with nation's focus in the war on drunk driving.

"Millions of taxpayer dollars are spent every year on roadblock operations and PR campaigns specifically designed to target responsible social drinkers, yet hardcore offenders like Mr. DWI continue to abuse alcohol and drive drunk," said ABI executive director John Doyle. "It is time to reevaluate our current strategy and focus on apprehending truly drunk drivers and chronic repeat offenders and mandating offender-paid alcoholism screening and treatment programs for these alcohol abusers."

The head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) notes that today's drunk driving problem is "by far and away" made up of "those who have alcohol use disorders." NHTSA adds that the average blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of a drunk driver in a fatal crash is .16% -- twice the legal limit in every state. MADD's website reports, "nearly one- third of drivers arrested or convicted of drunk driving each year are repeat offenders."

Yet NHTSA's current strategy of roadblocks and PR campaigns will have no impact on these alcohol abusers. According to a government study of roadblocks, these chronic drunk driving offenders actually "used their knowledge of checkpoints to avoid arrest by selecting alternate routes."

ABI noted that despite their knowledge that roadblocks are unsuccessful in nabbing drunk drivers, NHTSA continues to invest millions of dollars year after year in roadblock campaigns even though its own data shows that there are far more effective programs for getting drunk drivers off the road. A landmark NHTSA study found that roving patrols, which roam highways in search of erratic and aggressive drivers, were considerably more effective at nabbing drunk drivers than roadblock campaigns. NHTSA found that, "the number of DWI arrests made by the roving patrol program was nearly three times the average number of DWIs made by the checkpoint programs" and concluded, "If making a large number of DWI arrests is an objective of a program, [the data] clearly suggests that roving patrols would be the preferred option."

"If roving patrols are more effective in the war on drunk driving, why is NHTSA continuing to waste taxpayer money on roadblocks and PR campaigns?" Doyle asked.

The American Beverage Institute, an association of restaurants committed to the responsible serving of adult beverages. To learn more visit: http://www.americanbeverageinstitute.com/.