NCJ Number
107860
Date Published
1985
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This report reviews 1984 compliance with Indiana Criminal Code 9-11-3-4, effective September 1983, which requires persons with repeated convictions of operating while intoxicated within a 5-year period to be imprisoned for at least 48 consecutive hours or perform at least 10 days of community service.
Abstract
A total sample of 1,069 second or subsequent offenders in 15 Indiana counties was used in the study. Site visits were made to the courts in all 15 counties. The average weighted percentage of drunk driver recidivists who served 48 consecutive hours in jail was 64 percent. Adding those who performed at least 10 days of community service increased compliance to 68.7 percent. There were 181 recidivists (17 percent) who served neither jail time nor performed community service, 112 (10 percent) who served some jail time but not 48 consecutive hours, and 132 (12 percent) who served no jail time but performed less than 10 days of community service. Problems with determining and ensuring compliance are discussed. Diverse court recordkeeping systems and delays in retrieving files made data collection difficult. Because there were no checks of driver histories to determine recidivism, courts often did not realize they were dealing with repeat offenders and treated them as first offenders. Overall compliance for the first year of implementation was reasonable, but prospective, ongoing data collection and determining the true status of defendants at adjudication is recommended. 5 tables.