PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION

Despite significant reductions in Iowa alcohol-related fatalities and injuries during the 1990s, impaired driving remains a significant factor in traffic-related death and injury in Iowa. Alcohol-related fatalities for 2000 totaled 112. This is a 16 percent decrease from 1999 when 133 people died. Alcohol is a contributing factor in nine percent of all injury crashes, 16 percent of all crashes that result in a serious injury and 28 percent of all crashes resulting in a fatality.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The goals of the campaign were to:

• Provide specialized alcohol-related traffic safety education to judges, prosecutors, law enforcement officers and students;

• Achieve an 85 percent statewide Operating While Impaired (OWI) conviction rate; and

• Increase the total OWI enforcement contacts in all projects.

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES

The campaign included the following activities:

• Issuing contracts for selective overtime enforcement to focus on OWI and other alcohol-related violations to 17 police and sheriff's departments.

• Emphasizing nighttime enforcement primarily on weekends due to the elevated risk of alcohol-related crashes.

• Conducting multi-agency activities that included safety checkpoints.

• Conducting bar checks and monitoring activities at licensed liquor establishments.

• Providing judicial training through the State Court Administrator's Office within the Iowa Supreme Court Office of Judicial Education and Planning.

RESULTS

Reductions in alcohol-related traffic fatalities and injuries have been the primary factors behind overall reductions in traffic deaths and injuries in Iowa. Over the past ten years, Iowa has experienced a 47 percent drop in alcohol-related fatalities and a 38 percent drop in alcohol-related injuries. These significant reductions had an obvious reduction in the number of impaired drivers on Iowa's streets and highways. The funded agencies reported a total of 750 OWI contacts and most agencies exceeded their projected goals.

The Prosecuting Attorneys Training Coordinator and 16 prosecutors were trained in the areas of implied consent, youth alcohol and vehicular homicide and prosecuting OWI cases. In addition 240 law enforcement officers received Standard Field Sobriety Testing (SFST) training.

   SPRING 2002