Driving while impaired by alcohol (DWI) is an important factor in fatal road accidents. Consequently, many countries have enacted laws to deter this behaviour. Although studies have concluded that such laws can improve road safety, criminologists do not unanimously support these findings. Many believe that these studies do not operationally authenticate the concepts linked to the theory of deterrence and, therefore, cannot accurately identify those mechanisms responsible for the success or failure of the laws. The present study takes these criticisms into account. The research is based on an assessment model that integrates the variety of legal actions possible according to the basic concepts of the theory of deterrence. Our results show that the increase in the likelihood of being incarcerated, combined with a continued intense policy of police arrests and media campaigns following the introduction of Bill C-18, yielded significant reductions in fatal accident rates associated with DWI in Quebec between 1980 and 2001. For this period, we estimate that approximately 2,000 fatal accidents were prevented as a result of the increased likelihood of incarceration. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting