NEW MEXICO’S EFFORTS
AGAINST DWI
WINNING THROUGH COORDINATION
FRANKLIN GARCIA
NEW MEXICO DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
TRAFFIC SAFETY BUREAU
Presentation to Transportation Safety Research Board
September 3-5, 2008
Alcohol-Involved Fatalities
New Mexico Alcohol Involved Traffic Fatalities
296
300
304
274
250
261
249
235
228
221
231
200
213 188
195
192
200
219
214
191
194
8
19 9
9
19 0
91
19
9
19 2
9
19 3
94
19
9
19 5
9
19 6
97
19
9
19 8
9
20 9
0
20 0
0
20 1
0
20 2
0
20 3
0
20 4
05
20
2
07 0
pr 06
el
im
19
88
150
19
Fatalities
289
Year
Alcohol Fatalities
176
DWI Leadership Group-Chaired by Office of the
Governor DWI Czar and DOT
•
•
•
•
Department of Transportation
Office of the Governor
Administrative Office of the Courts
Metropolitan Drug Court
• Department of Finance
and Administration
• Department of Health
• Department of Public Safety
Leadership Group (cont).
• Taxation and Revenue
Department
• Department of Indian Affairs
• Federal Highway
Administration
• Federal Motor Carrier Safety
Administration
• National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration
F M C S A
Federal Motor Carrier
Safety Administration
DWI Leadership Group
•
•
•
•
Probation and Parole
Local and County DWI Coordinators
Children, Youth and Families Dept.
University of New Mexico
– Division of Government Research
– Institute of Public Law
• Non profit groups
Public Policy Changes
• Increased penalties for all offenses
• Doubled the enhancement for prior DWI’s
under vehicular homicide
• Mandatory treatment/increased community
service
• Set a three hour threshold for time of
testing in DWI—Day Case Fix
• Ignition Interlock for all convicted
offenders/Tampering
Law Enforcement Projects
• Superblitz/Operation DWI
• Drunkbusters
• Six Counties—Full Time Law Enforcement
• 100 Days of Summer
Adjudication
• DWI resource prosecutor
– Prosecutor’s manual
• Judicial Education
– Regional seminars
– Orientation for new judges
– Updates at annual conferences
– Publications and online resources
• Court monitoring
100 Days and Nights of
Summer
• High visibility
enforcement DWI
– Speeding
– Occupant protection
• Results – 18.6 percent
reduction in fatalities
• Press events and web
site
Fatal Crashes: June 1 – Sept. 8
•2006: 145
•2007: 118 (18.6% Reduction)
DWI Initiatives
• High-risk county program
• Bernalillo County Metropolitan Court
program
• Ignition interlock program
• Public reminders to use Drunk Busters
DWI Initiatives
• Checkpoints
• Law enforcement training
– DRE/FST
New Mexico Interlock Laws
• 1999 Optional for 2nd and 3rd DWI.
• 2002 Mandatory for all Aggravated and
Subsequent DWIs. Indigent Fund
• 2003 Ignition Interlock License Act:
….an alternative to revocation.
• 2005 Mandatory Interlocks for all DWIs:
1yr for 1st ; 2 for 2nd ; 3 for 3rd ; Lifetime for 4+
• 2008 Penalties for Circumvention Attempts
New Mexico Installations by Year
Recidivism of NM Drivers after a DWI Conviction
16%
14%
12%
10%
Cravens Crash
Down
36%
8%
Ignition
Interlock
Law
Down
30%
6%
4%
2%
0%
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992
1993
1994
1995
1996
1997
1998
1999
2000
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
Fraction Re-Arrested Within 1 Year
Data from CTS407; Plot by Dick Roth 8/17/07
Year of Conviction
Recidivism reduction
The Majority of DWIs Are First Offenders
NM DWI Arrests in 2005
5+, 1206, 7%
4th, 920, 5%
3rd, 1817, 10%
2nd, 3659, 20%
1st, 10788,
58%
•To Reduce Recidivism, You cannot ignore First Offenders
•To Reduce First Offenders, General Deterrence & Prevention
News Release
Thanksgiving Superblitz
• During October, November and December
of 2007, ignition interlock devices
prevented almost 16,000 attempts to start
their vehicles by convicted DWI offenders
who tested positive for alcohol.
Public Awareness/Education
• You Drink, You Drive, You Lose—
Multimedia Campaign
• Six Counties Outreach Coordinators
• Four Corners Native American
Campaign
Native American Project
•
•
•
•
•
Native American Coordinator
Native American Task Force
Public Awareness Campaign
Data Sharing
Cross Commissioning
Local and Community DWI programs
Local DWI Programs
(LDWI)
Funded through liquor excise
taxes
Funds administered by DFA
Local planning councils decide
priorities
• Treatment
• Alternative sentencing
• Compliance
monitoring/screening
• Alcohol-related domestic
violence
• Underage drinking
• DWI checkpoints
• Saturation patrols
Community DWI Programs
(CDWI)
Funded through $75 license
re-instatement fees imposed
by courts
Funds administered by TSB:
Local task forces review DWIstatistics, prepare a plan and
apply for funding for:
•
•
•
•
Prevention
Enforcement
Training
Public information and
education
• Offender programs
All fees are returned to the
community from which they were
generated.
Liquor Control
• Liquor Control Task Force
• Change in Regulations-Three Strikes
• Mobile Strike Unit
What’s Next?
• Early Intervention
• If 70% of those who cause fatal crashes
are first time offenders, where can we
reach them before someone dies?
– MIP
What’s Next?
• Special Populations:
– Native American are victims of DWI at 5 time
the rate of non natives, Hispanics at 3 times.
– Native American Task Force and Plan
– Data Sharing for License Revocation,
Enforcement project
What’s Next…
• Ongoing Liquor Control---Prosecution of
the Three Strikes cases.
• Courts and Prosecution
– Getting the cases heard on their merits
– Court Monitoring
– Compliance Monitoring—Getting what you
paid for
» Compliance based removal of Ignition Interlocks