NCJ Number
205480
Journal
Canadian Society of Forensic Science Volume: 37 Issue: 1 Dated: March 2004 Pages: 1-8
Editor(s)
B. Yamashita
Date Published
March 2004
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This study analyzed the characteristics of drinking drivers who were arrested with the highest Intoxilyzer 5000C results in the city of Toronto between 1995 and 1999.
Abstract
Studies have shown that the risk of motor vehicle collision increases rapidly with an increasing blood alcohol concentration (BAC) or breath alcohol concentration (BrAC). In addition, it has been demonstrated that drinking drivers are more frequently encountered during the weekend and in particular during the late evening or early morning hours. However, the demographics of drivers with unusually high BAC’s may not follow a particular day or time pattern, as has been shown in previous studies. This study was conducted to determine the characteristics of drinking drivers with the highest BrAC’s and, therefore, the highest risk of alcohol-related motor vehicle collision. For each of the 5 years studied, 1995 to 1999, the authors selected the 20 highest Intoxilyzer 5000C, resulting in a sample size of 100 drivers. The sample consisted of 10 female and 90 male drivers, aged 22 to 64 years (median age of 41 years). The (BrAC) for these drivers ranged from 0.301 to 0.410 g/210 L, with a median of 0.335 g/210L. Most of the drivers would be classified as alcohol-dependent according to various epidemiological studies and the National Council of Alcoholism. Analysis of the BrAC’s revealed that the median BrAC for female drivers (0.345 g/210L) was significantly higher than the median BrAC of the male drivers (0.333 g/210L). The analysis also found that there was no correlation between age of the driver and BrAC. Within the sample, 47 of the drivers (41 male, 6 female) had been involved in motor vehicle collisions and 53 drivers (49 male, 4 female) were not involved in collisions. The analysis found that there were no statistically significant differences in BrAC’s between the collision and non-collision drivers. In addition, the study showed that the number of alcohol-related occurrences in this group of drivers was spaced evenly throughout the week with no increase on the weekends. Of these occurrences, 51 percent were recorded between the hours of 12:00 noon and 8:00 pm, whereas only 25 percent occurred between 8:00 pm and 12:00 midnights, a time more often dedicated to police countermeasures. This temporal relationship in the alcohol-related occurrences is consistent with the observed drinking behavior of alcohol-dependent individuals in which drinking can occur anytime during the day or week rather than only at night or on the weekends. As such, police countermeasures against drinking and driving for this group of drivers with the highest BrAC’s should not be concentrated only at night or on the weekends. 3 figures, 1 table, and 24 references