ENFORCEMENT OF DRUNKEN DRIVING LAWS IN CASES INVOLVING INJURED INTOXICATED DRIVERS

Study objective: To determine the frequency of driving while impaired (DWI) charges among alcohol-intoxicated drivers injured in motor vehic le crashes (MVCs) and any differences in the group of those charged co mpared with those not charged. Methods: We performed a retrospective a nalysis of linked data from medical and judicial sources. Our setting was an urban emergency department of a trauma center serving a populat ion of 1 million. We studied consecutive drivers injured in MVCs over a period of 15 months who had measured serum ethanol (BAG) levels of 1 00 mg/dL or higher. BAG, Trauma Score (TS), demographics, and crash da ta were linked to court records of charges, outcome, and prior convict ions. The group of individuals who were charged with DWI were compared with those who were not charged. Results: One hundred eighty-seven pa tients were studied; 53 (28%) were charged with DWI, and 32 (17% of to tal) were convicted. Two (7%) of 29 patients with severe injuries, 9 ( 28%) of 32 with moderate injuries, and 42 (33%) of 126 with nonsevere injuries were charged (P=.004). Eighteen (16%) of 112 patients with no prior convictions were charged; 20 (56%) of 36 patients with one, 11 (52%) of 21 with two, 3 (25%) of 12 with three, and 0 of 5 with four o r more prior DWI convictions were charged (P<.001). There were no sign ificant differences in BAG, demographics, or other measures between th e two groups. Conclusion: Alcohol-impaired drivers who require ED trea tment for injuries sustained in an MVC are infrequently charged with D WI. The likelihood of a DWI charge diminishes with increasing severity of injury. Repeat offenders are charged more often, but the frequency of charges does not increase with increasing number of prior DWI conv ictions.