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PROBLEM IDENTIFICATIONIn 1999, 44
percent of all Louisiana traffic fatalities involved alcohol, compared
to the national average of 34 percent. In an attempt to help reduce the
number of alcohol-related fatal and injury crashes in Louisiana, the
Louisiana Highway Safety Commission (LHSC) contracted with the Louisiana
State Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Office to solicit judges to
support the Victim Impact Panel (VIP) Program. Driving While Intoxicated
(DWI) offenders are sentenced to attend a court-ordered VIP of DWI
victims to understand the personal impact that a DWI may cause on
innocent persons. GOALS AND OBJECTIVESThe primary goal is to reduce the number of alcohol-related fatal and injury crashes in Louisiana. To reach this goal, Louisiana MADD sought to:
STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIESThe panel includes one or more victim survivors of alcohol-related crashes. These survivors talk about the impact that the crash had on their lives and the lives of their friends and families. The program has activities on two fronts. First, judges and magistrates are informed about the panels and asked to include, as part of their sentencing, a requirement that the offender attend an impact panel. DWI offenders hear first-hand about the tragic results of drinking and driving. Twenty-seven statewide judicial courts have established VIPs. Second, the VIP database, which was developed to track DWI offender recidivism, currently contains over 3,000 DWI offender names. The operating budget during FY2001 was over $37,000.00. Program income earned from DWI offender fees totaled slightly over $19,000.00. |
RESULTS
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WINTER 2002 |