DUI: Reckless and Zero Tolerance - Research Paper Example

DUI: Reckless and Zero Tolerance The research paper will discuss DUI (Driving under the Influence) Laws and will focus on their success in controlling behavior and deterring driving under influence. Law enforcement agencies have been passing such laws that are meant to deter drivers (Chambliss, 2011) who drive while intoxicated and pose risks to others’ and their own lives (Jacobs, 1989; Ryan, 1993). Some of these laws include Administrative License Revocation (ALR) which allows the police officer to take the driver’s license into custody for a year if he refuses a breath test; Zero Tolerance Juvenile Alcohol Law under which any person under the age of 21 is not allowed to have any amount of alcohol in his blood while driving; Implied Consent Law which states that if you have a driver’s license, this means that you have submitted yourself to take a chemical test whenever the officer wants you to; and, Habitual Violator Law which declares severe penalties for anyone who offends the law multiple times or is caught intoxicated or drunk while driving more than once.

These laws will be discussed in detail along with a consideration to penalties that they impose on reckless drivers. Literature review and past research will be consulted which includes research papers by Fell and Lacey (2011), Traynor (2009), and Webster, Pimentel and Clark (2008). Accounts of actual case studies will be discussed that would help us to know whether these laws have been successful in controlling drivers’ behavior by proving to be effective deterrents, and if not, then what are the discrepancies in these laws that are keeping them to be successful.

ReferencesChambliss, W.J. (2011). Courts, Law, and Justice. USA: SAGE. Fell, J.C., & Lacey, J.H. (2011). An assessment of Maryland’s driving under the influence laws. Journal of Transportation Safety & Security, 3(2). Jacobs, J.B. (1989). Drunk Driving: An American Dilemma. USA: University of Chicago Press. Ryan, G.H. (1993). Dui Fact Book: Drinking & Driving Can Tear Your Life Apart. USA: DIANE Publishing. Traynor, T.L. (2009). The impact of state level behavioral regulations on traffic fatality rates.

Journal of Safety Research, 40(6), pp. 421-426. Webster, J.M., Pimentel, J.H., & Clark, D.B. (2008). Characteristics of DUI offenders convicted in wet, dry, and moist counties. Accident Analysis & Prevention, 40(3), pp. 976-982.