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34 Crime & Delinquency 3 (1988)

handle is hein.journals/cadq34 and id is 1 raw text is: The authors wish to express their appreciation to Professors Carole Barnes and Dean Dorn of California State University, Sacramento, and Anna Bravo of Sacramento County District Attorneys Office for their critical reading of the manuscript. We are also indebted to Brett Braidman, Phillip Coonley, Myra Rutherford, Vanessa Santiago, and Kimberley Whitney for their assistance in data collection. Driving Under the Influence: The Impact of Legislative Reform on Court Sentencing Practices Rodney Kingsnorth Michael Jungsten In 1982, California introduced a number ofrevisions into its Vehicle Code sections dealing with the prosecution and sentencing of defendants charged with driving under the influence of alcohol. These revisions included redefining the relationship between blood alcohol concentration and criminal liability, constraints upon the plea-bargaining process, and an increase in the severity ofpenalties. An assessment is offered, based upon a random sample of2,091 cases from one California county, ofthe impact oflegislative reform on court sentencingpractices. While the new law succeeded in eliminating prior conviction bargaining, the reduction to reckless drivingform of bargaining, though initially substantially reduced, quickly rose again to prereform levels. Contrary to expectations, trial rates increased and rates of conviction at trial decreased. Problems of court congestion were exacerbated rather than relieved. The impact of increased penalties has been substantial for some offenders and for others negligible. The social problem of driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs (DUI) has received considerable attention from social scientists in recent years. For the most part, studies in this area have focused on the deterrent value of the criminal law, proposals for prevention (e.g., raising the drinking age), and analyses of social movements, such as MADD, that seek to address the problem through legislative reform (Berg, 1986). Significantly absent from this literature are impact analyses of recent legislative reforms on court sentencing practices in DUI cases. This omission is particularly surprising in view RODNEY KINGSNORTH: Professor of Sociology at California State University, Sacramento. MICHAEL JUNGSTEN: graduate student, Sociology, California State University, Sacramento. CRIME & DELINQUENCY, Vol. 34 No. 1, January 1988 3-28 o 1988 Sage Publications, Inc. 3 from the SAGE Social Science Collections. All Rights Reserved.

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