Articles Posted in News, Prevention, & Studies

Huntington Beach, California is considering posting photographs of those arrested, suspected of their second or subsequent driving under the influence charge, on their police Facebook page. Councilman Devin Dwyer believes this will shame people into compliance with the DUI laws, according to 10news.com.

Other cities tried this same approach but canned the projects after only a brief period. In Evesham Township, New Jersey, the prosecutor pulled the photographs after only four months stating that the police may not be able to release such information. The Honolulu, Hawaii Police Department ran a pilot project posting driving under the influence arrest photos on their website; however, the program was halted without a specified reason.

Even though the California Constitution grants individuals the right to privacy, the California Public Records Act provides that state and local law enforcement agencies shall make public the full name and physical description of every individual arrested by the agency.

Driving under the influence (DUI) prevention includes the use of designated driver programs. Since the 1980’s, there have been two types of these programs in the United States: 1.) Incentive programs; and, 2.) Population-based campaigns.

The incentive programs involve drinking establishments offering designated drivers free non-alcoholic drinks, food, or admission. Population-based programs use mass media to change the social norms, encouraging people to use a designated driver.

A review of the two programs found that both lack sufficient evidence to determine the effectiveness of the use of designated drivers in lowering the number of people who drive while under the influence (DUI) of alcohol or drugs.