NCJ Number
68480
Journal
POLIZEI Volume: 68 Issue: 10 Dated: (OCTOBER 1977) Pages: 328-332
Date Published
1977
Length
5 pages
Annotation
TRENDS IN CRIME RATES, ESPECIALLY TRAFFIC CRIME RATES, IN 1958, 1963, 1965, 1969, AND 1972 TO 1974 DEMONSTRATE THE EFFECTS OF CHANGES IN WEST GERMAN LAWS.
Abstract
STATISTICS ON GENERAL CRIMES DO NOT INCLUDE CRIMINAL TRAFFIC OFFENSES, SO THAT TRAFFIC CRIME STATISTICS MUST BE DERIVED FROM CONVICTION DATA. AFTER A SPEED LIMIT OF 50 K/H WAS INTRODUCED WITHIN CITY LIMITS IN 1957, THE 1957 ACCIDENT RATE IN CITIES DROPPED, ALTHOUGH IT REACHED A NEW HIGH AGAIN IN 1959. MORE STRINGENT RULES FOR VEHICLE AND DRIVER TESTING, PARTICULARLY FOR JUVENILES, LED TO A REDUCTION IN TRAFFIC CONVICTIONS, WITH THE GREATEST DECREASES FOR JUVENILES. LAWS FROM 1963 TO 1965 WHICH INCREASED PENALTIES FOR DRUNKEN DRIVING FAILED: TRAFFIC OFFENSES FOR DRUNKEN DRIVING INCREASED. WHEN TRAFFIC OFFENSES REACHED 50 PERCENT OF TOTAL CRIMES, ATTEMPTS WERE MADE TO DECRIMINALIZE OFFENSES WITHOUT MORAL SIGNIFICANCE. A CONSIDERABLE DECREASE IN RECORDED TRAFFIC OFFENSES WAS THE RESULT. A HIGHWAY SPEED LIMIT OF 100 KM/H, INTRODUCED IN 1972 TO QUELL RISING TRAFFIC FATALITIES, REDUCED ACCIDENTS BY 13 PERCENT IN THE NEXT YEAR. SIMILARLY, A LOWERED ADMISSIBLE BLOOD ALCOHOL LEVEL WAS REFLECTED IN A DECREASED NUMBER OF ALCOHOL-RELATED TRAFFIC OFFENSES. THE 1970 LEGAL REFORM WHICH SOUGHT TO ELIMINATE SHORT-TERM PRISON SENTENCES REDUCED IMPRISONMENT PENALTIES FROM 60 PERCENT OF ALL CONVICTIONS IN 1969 TO 14 PERCENT IN 1970. THE 1975 REFORM REDUCED THE NUMBER OF IMPRISONMENTS STILL FURTHER. OFFICIAL CRIME RATES HAVE ALSO BEEN INFLUENCED BY THE INTENSITY OF POLICE INVESTIGATION, E.G., THE FREQUENCY OF POLICE TRAFFIC CHECKS FOR DRUNKEN DRIVERS. NOTES AND A BIBLIOGRAPHY ARE FURNISHED. --IN GERMAN.