Drink Driving a " Misdemeanour " !

A law change is Victoria has the result that first offender low range drink drivers no longer face court and automatically get an on-the-spot fine and the loss of ten demerit points.   The penalty for this driving offence varies over the amount of alcohol detected but in the eyes of many people this move simply reduces the severity of drink driving from a " crime " to a " misdemeanour" !   In the interest of law uniformity, New South Wales is pondering adopting this same system.

The penalty range in Victoria is illustrative.  Learners and probationary drivers are disqualified for six months and need to have an alcohol interlock installed in their car for a minimum of six months. The mere presence of any alcohol will result in this penalty.

Drivers aged over 26 who register a blood alcohol limit between 0.05 and 0.07 will only received an on-the-spot fine and the loss of ten demerit points.  That will be an automatic penalty which will not involve an appearance in court.

Drivers who blow between 0.07 and 0.10 are disqualified on-the-spot for six months and have to have an alcohol interlock fitted.  Those who register over 0.10 are dealt with by a magistrate.

The claimed benefit of this law change is uncluttered courts, but in most cases it also removes the stigma of this offence being reported in the media.   Public opinion has changed drastically over the years. Drink driving is now a social crime that finds public disfavour.  Offenders are named and shamed and this in itself is a powerful deterrent.

Young men and young women will feel aggrieved that an age limit of 26 applies to those who slip slightly over that 0.05 limit and they will be treated differently.   They will not benefit from this " first offender " relief and any imposition of demerit points is likely to have a cumulative effect on license loss.

This law change will accelerate the imposition of alcohol interlocks.  This device requires drivers to blow and record the lack of alcohol being present to allow the car to start, but is involved a cost of about two thousand dollars. The degree of cost imposition depends heavily on the wealth and status of the offender.

One of the effects on this law change is likely to be an increase in the number of people driving unlicensed.  For many, the car is a necessity to get the kids to school or to get to a job that is almost impossible by public transport.  The penalty for repeated unlicensed driving is usually a jail term and unlicensed drivers also deliver an insurance hazard for any property they damage.

Whenever we stray from the usual practice of penalties being decided by magistrates or judges we enter the field of " unintended consequences ".  There is no excuse for drink driving, but the job of a judge is to make the penalty fit the crime and sometimes that involves extenuating circumstances.

The day drink driving moves from having a police officer make an arrest, take the culprit in handcuffs to a charge room and from there make a court appearance before a magistrate to simply applying the same fine procedure that is applicable to overstaying a parking meter, the severity of the crime will diminish in the public mind.

Logic dictates that the crime is greater the more alcohol is revealed in the test but if the aim is to have drivers below 0.05 this will not be achieved by lowering the penalties.