1 2017 MADD Nebraska Court Monitoring Briefing Introduction States can have strong laws and tough enforcement but without consistent outcomes in the court system the message that drunk driving is a serious crime may get lost. The court system is our society’s mechanism for determining an individual’s guilt or innocence. It also sets the parameters of an offender’s punishment, restitution and rehabilitation. Over the past two years, the number of drunk driving deaths nationwide has increased after years of steady decline. Despite a cultural shift in America since Mothers Against Drunk Driving® (MADD) was founded in 1980, drunk driving still remains the biggest killer on our nation’s roadways. More than 10,000 people were killed in drunk driving crashes in 2015. MADD believes there will come a day when there are No More Victims® of drunk driving. MADD’s guiding force to achieve this goal is the Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving — supporting high-visibility law enforcement, advocating for ignition interlocks for all drunk driving offenders, pushing for development of advanced vehicle technology and drawing upon public support for these initiatives. A Look at Drunk Driving in Nebraska In 2017, 30 percent of fatal crashes were alcohol-related in Nebraska. This number is down slightly from the average of 35 percent of the previous four years (2013-2016). The number of DUI Arrests have decreased from 10,718 in 2012 to 6,877 in 2017 while the Alcohol Related Fatal Crashes and Fatalities has varied over the years. Year DUI Arrests DUI Convictions Alcohol Related Fatal Crashes Alcohol Related Fatalities 2011 12,207 10,549 49 51 2012 10,718 9,528 81 87 2013 9,343 8,703 65 70 2014 8,617 7,576 75 78 2015 8,199 7,136 71 81 2016 7,311 6,594 73 81 2017 6,877 6,203 63 71 MADD Nebraska and Highway Safety Advocates can work on reducing the number of alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes on state roadways by addressing the number of arrests and convictions for all offenses. Court monitoring is intended to enhance transparency and accountability within the criminal justice system and reduce the likelihood of repeat drunk driving offenses. Studies show that consistently placing an observer in the courtroom has a positive effect on case disposition. Standardized reporting used by court monitors contributes to an increase in information that can result
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2017 MADD Nebraska Court Monitoring Briefing · 2019-09-30 · 1 2017 MADD Nebraska Court Monitoring Briefing Introduction States can have strong laws and tough enforcement but without
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2017 MADD Nebraska Court Monitoring Briefing
Introduction States can have strong laws and tough enforcement but without consistent outcomes in the court system the message that drunk driving is a serious crime may get lost. The court system is our society’s mechanism for determining an individual’s guilt or innocence. It also sets the parameters of an offender’s punishment, restitution and rehabilitation. Over the past two years, the number of drunk driving deaths nationwide has increased after years of steady decline. Despite a cultural shift in America since Mothers Against Drunk Driving® (MADD) was founded in 1980, drunk driving still remains the biggest killer on our nation’s roadways. More than 10,000 people were killed in drunk driving crashes in 2015.
MADD believes there will come a day when there are No More Victims® of drunk driving. MADD’s guiding force to achieve this goal is the Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving — supporting high-visibility law enforcement, advocating for ignition interlocks for all drunk driving offenders, pushing for development of advanced vehicle technology and drawing upon public support for these initiatives.
A Look at Drunk Driving in Nebraska In 2017, 30 percent of fatal crashes were alcohol-related in Nebraska. This number is down slightly from the average of 35 percent of the previous four years (2013-2016). The number of DUI Arrests have decreased from 10,718 in 2012 to 6,877 in 2017 while the Alcohol Related Fatal Crashes and Fatalities has varied over the years.
Year DUI Arrests DUI Convictions Alcohol Related Fatal Crashes
Alcohol Related Fatalities
2011 12,207 10,549 49 51
2012 10,718 9,528 81 87
2013 9,343 8,703 65 70
2014 8,617 7,576 75 78
2015 8,199 7,136 71 81
2016 7,311 6,594 73 81
2017 6,877 6,203 63 71
MADD Nebraska and Highway Safety Advocates can work on reducing the number of alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes on state roadways by addressing the number of arrests and convictions for all offenses. Court monitoring is intended to enhance transparency and accountability within the criminal justice system and reduce the likelihood of repeat drunk driving offenses. Studies show that consistently placing an observer in the courtroom has a positive effect on case disposition. Standardized reporting used by court monitors contributes to an increase in information that can result
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in higher conviction rates. When monitors cannot be in court, they collect data through online records in a process called data mining.
The Case for Court Monitoring Research has shown that first-time DUI offenders have driven drunk an average of 87 times before they are arrested (Zader, Krawchuk, Moore, 1997). The primary reason drivers continue to drive drunk is because they can. Nationally, about one-third of all drivers arrested for DUI have had a previous drunk driving conviction, which is similar to Nebraska’s rate. Across the country, DUI cases are often handled inconsistently, amended to a lesser charge, or simply dismissed by the justice system. MADD Nebraska advocates for swift and equitable treatment for all DUI cases. MADD’s Court Monitoring Program (CMP) was designed to ensure that DUI arrests are prosecuted, unwarranted dismissals are decreased and justice is achieved. Goals of the CMP are to:
• Compile pertinent information on how DUI court cases are handled from county to county.
• Share mutual concerns about the outcomes of criminal cases with professionals in the legal arena.
• Report information gathered by trained volunteers to relevant entities and community members to ensure the system can be maintained and improved.
To achieve these goals, MADD Nebraska utilized trained volunteers to observe court procedures and collect pertinent information in DUI cases. Types of data collected included offense type, age and gender of the offender and sanctions imposed. MADD also worked closely with law enforcement, prosecutors and vested partners to relay data collected from the court monitoring program to show trends, patterns and behaviors when it comes to drunk driving enforcement and prosecution in those counties.
County Selection The fifteen priority counties included in the MADD Court Monitoring Evaluation and Education Project account for 1,400,872 residents or 74% of the Nebraska population. The fifteen counties are: Adams, Buffalo, Dodge, Douglas, Gage, Hall, Lancaster, Lincoln, Madison, Platte, Saline, Sarpy, Saunders, Washington and York. These counties were identified by the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety (NOHS) as having either a high crash rate for alcohol, speed and/or alcohol use by youth.
The target population consists of offenders arrested for DUI. It is imperative that courts take a strong look at the effectiveness of DUI adjudication and how those actions contribute to the progress in reducing impaired driving fatalities and recidivism. Residents will benefit from a court monitoring program focused on the criminal justice system and sentencing outcomes. MADD Nebraska worked closely with law enforcement, prosecutors, court personnel, and vested partners to collect data. Information will illustrate trends, patterns, and behaviors surrounding impaired driving enforcement and prosecution.
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Quantitative Data Collection Court Monitoring Program data were obtained from two sources: court trial forms, completed by MADD Nebraska staff and volunteers, and the Nebraska Trial Courts Case Search System database, hereafter called Justice. CMP volunteers included concerned community members, college students interested in volunteering and/or requiring internship hours for a class, and retired adults. Data from the court trial forms were collected from four categories: 1) case information, 2) charges, 3) sanctions/sentence and 4) comments. Examples of case information included defendant name, date of birth and name and location of court. Charges recorded included the original charge, final charge, amended, and arresting agency. Examples of sanctions/sentences imposed included jail time, fines, ignition interlock, license suspension/revocation, and probation. Information collected by court program monitors were verified by MADD Nebraska CMP staff through records accessed from Justice. This database provided a detailed record of each DUI case presented to the court. Case information, charges, and sanctions imposed were available through the Justice system. Data obtained from the Justice database was compared to information recorded on the court trial form to assure accuracy of data collection by court program monitors. Case files with Case Year 2017 were utilized for the data collection. Close to one hundred percent of all cases were included in the analysis if a county had 300 or fewer DUI arrests in the year of interest for analysis. If a county had more than 300 DUI arrests (i.e., Hall County) a random number of cases, for a total of close to 300 were chosen for analysis for expedited data analysis.
Data Analysis Data from closed and misdemeanor DUI cases with sanctions imposed were entered into Microsoft Excel spreadsheets for analysis. Variables of interest for this report included rulings, number and type of amended cases, length of case, offender age and gender, offense type, and sanctions imposed. Data was reported by frequencies, percentages, and averages.
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Case Analysis for all 15 Counties: Adams, Buffalo, Dodge, Douglas, Gage, Hall,
Lancaster, Lincoln, Madison, Platte, Saline, Sarpy, Saunders, Washington and
York
Statewide there were 6,877 arrests recorded by NDOT – Office of Highway Safety.
MADD analyzed 2,430 DUI cases that occurred in 2017. This represents 35% of the
total cases. These cases were primarily misdemeanor charges, unless the individual
was charged with a DUI 3rd .15+ or higher – those are considered felony offenses in the
state of Nebraska. Of the 2,430 cases, 2,309 were closed and adjudicated by the time
this report was printed. A total of 92 cases had bench warrants and 29 were still open
and in the process of going through the judicial system.
Year 2017
# of Cases Analyzed 2,430
# of Cases Adjudicated* 2,309
# of Bench Warrants 92
# of Open Cases 29 *Numbers do not include Bench Warrant or Open Cases
2,4302,309
92 290
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
Cases Analyzed Adjudicated* Bench Warrant Open Cases
Totals
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Adjudication Summary for all 15 Counties in 2017:
Below is a breakdown of the findings for the 2,309 closed cases. Fifty five percent of the
offenders pled and were found guilty of the original DUI charge. Thirty four percent of
the offenders pled and were found guilty of an amended DUI charge. MADD believes
that all who are charged with DUI offenses should be prosecuted as charged, rather
than be allowed to negotiate to a lesser offense, especially a non-alcohol related
offense.
# of Cases 2017
Guilty Pleas to Original Charge 1,273
Not Guilty Pleas to Original Charge 5
Guilty Pleas to Amended DUI Charge 792
Not Guilty Pleas to Amended DUI Charge 0
Pleas to Non DUI Charge 154
Dismissed 81
Transferred 4
55%
0%
34%
0%7%
4% 0%
Adjudication Summary for all 15 Counties
Guilty Pleas to Original Charge Not Guilty Pleas to Original Charge
Guilty Pleas to Amended DUI Charge Not Guilty Pleas to Amended DUI Charge
Pleas to Non DUI Charge Dismissed
Transferred
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County Demographics 2017:
The table below shows a comprehensive count for all fifteen counties, including gender and age breakdowns. Total counts and the overall average age are also included.
County Males Females 16-20 years
21-25 years
26-39 years
40+ years
Average Age
Adams ( n=119) 97 22 8 39 36 36 34
Buffalo (n=168) 130 38 13 42 77 36 33
Dodge (n=151) 119 32 10 39 61 41 34
Douglas (n=332) 246 86 11 60 164 97 34
Gage (n=75) 59 16 0 22 27 26 35
Hall (n=361) 291 70 39 79 144 99 33
Lancaster (n=341) 264 77 17 90 159 75 33
Lincoln (n=170) 131 39 8 30 77 55 36
Madison (n=138) 100 38 8 30 55 45 35
Phelps (n=23) 19 4 1 3 10 9 39
Platte (n=129) 107 22 4 31 51 43 36
Sarpy (n=227) 180 47 12 47 103 65 34
Saunders (n=65) 56 9 2 11 22 30 38
Washington (n=88) 64 24 3 14 35 36 37
York (n=43) 31 12 0 3 19 21 39
Totals (n=2,430) 1894 536 136 540 1040 714 35
n=number of cases analyzed
78%
22%
Males vs Females
Males Females
0
500
1000
1500
16-20 years 21-25 years 26-39 years 40+ years
Average Age of Offender
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DUI Conviction Rates 2017:
The average conviction rate for all fifteen counties was 87%. Douglas and Lancaster Counties had the highest conviction rates at 94% and 95%. Phelps County had the lowest rate at 68%. Data included in this report was retrieved from Justice only and open, dismissed, bench warrant and cases transferred to Juvenile court were excluded from analysis to capture sanctioning practices of adjudicated DUI cases only.
County 2017 Conviction Rate
Adams ( n=116) 75%
Buffalo (n=158) 89%
Dodge (n=142) 95%
Douglas (n=320) 94%
Gage (n=70) 93%
Hall (n=336) 85%
Lancaster (n=328) 96%
Lincoln (n=162) 88%
Madison (n=123) 90%
Phelps (n=22) 68%
Platte (n=124) 87%
Sarpy (n=217) 90%
Saunders (n=64) 80%
Washington (n=87) 91%
York (n=40) 78%
Totals (n=2,309) 87%
n=adjudicated cases
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
120%
2017 Conviction Rates
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Case Length 2017:
The average time it took for a DUI case to be adjudicated, from arrest date to conviction date, for the fifteen counties was 148 days. The range ran from 103 days in Dodge County to 197 days in Sarpy County.
193 192
103
134144
131
190
121138 144
128
197181
118 112
148
0
50
100
150
200
250
Average Length of Case (days)
County Average Length of Case (days)
Adams ( n=116) 193
Buffalo (n=158) 192
Dodge (n=142) 103
Douglas (n=320) 134
Gage (n=70) 144
Hall (n=336) 131
Lancaster (n=328) 190
Lincoln (n=162) 121
Madison (n=123) 138
Phelps (n=22) 144
Platte (n=124) 128
Sarpy (n=217) 197
Saunders (n=64) 181
Washington (n=87) 118
York (n=40) 112
Totals (n=2,309) 148 Days
n=adjudicated cases
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DUI Amended Cases 2017:
The total percentage of amended cases for all fifteen Counties was 41%. The proportion of total amended cases ranged from less than 1% in Lancaster County to 68% in York County.
County
Total Amended
Cases
Percent of Amended
Cases
Amended to a Lesser DUI
Charge
Amended to a Higher DUI
Charge
Amended to a Non-DUI Charge
Adams ( n=116) 57 49% 21 0 18
Buffalo (n=158) 86 54% 77 0 9
Dodge (n=142) 68 48% 61 0 7
Douglas (n=320) 174 54% 159 1 14
Gage (n=70) 10 14% 8 0 2
Hall (n=336) 129 38% 87 19 23
Lancaster (n=328) 23 1% 17 2 4
Lincoln (n=162) 71 44% 58 0 13
Madison (n=123) 61 50% 51 0 10
Phelps (n=22) 14 64% 8 0 6
Platte (n=124) 51 41% 39 1 11
Sarpy (n=217) 106 49% 91 3 12
Saunders (n=64) 32 50% 19 2 11
Washington (n=87) 33 38% 26 0 7
York (n=40) 27 68% 20 0 7
Totals (n=2,309) 942 41% 742 28 154
n=adjudicated cases
49%54%
48%54%
14%
38%
1%
44%50%
64%
41%
49% 50%
38%
68%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Percent of Amended Cases
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Ignition Interlock 2017
In Nebraska, ignition Interlock installation became mandatory for all those convicted of
DUI in 2013. Ignition interlocks save lives by requiring convicted drunk drivers to prove
they are sober before their car will start. Ignition interlocks are proven effective — on
Revoked License 2 cases; 3-15 years Revoked License
Impound License Impound License
Interlock 2 Interlock
Victim Impact Panel Victim Impact Panel
Attitudinal Dynamics Attitudinal Dynamics
AA AA
Alcohol Education Alcohol Education
Community Service Community Service
House Arrest House Arrest
Immobilize Vehicle Immobilize Vehicle
DUI 4th DUI 5th
Cases found guilty: 0 Cases found guilty: 0
Sanction Average/Range Sanction Average/Range
Fine Fine
Fees (Average) Fees (Average)
Jail Jail
Probation Probation
Revoked License Revoked License
Impound License Impound License
Interlock Interlock
Victim Impact Panel Victim Impact Panel
Attitudinal Dynamics Attitudinal Dynamics
AA AA
Alcohol Education Alcohol Education
Community Service Community Service
House Arrest House Arrest
Immobilize Vehicle Immobilize Vehicle
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Conclusion
Overall, Nebraska has some of the strongest DUI laws in the nation. While inconsistencies in the types of sanctions exist, overall offenders are being taken off the streets. Numerous factors impact how law enforcement, prosecutors and judges adjudicate DUI cases. These may include city ordinances, state and federal laws, technical issues with breath testing equipment and circumstances of each individual case. Currently, there are many strong statutes and laws in place for the adjudication of DUI cases. One concern from this report is the number of cases being amended to lesser charges. An offender who is arrested for a DUI 2nd should not be allowed to plead down to a lesser charge – the offender needs to be held accountable. Another concern is the high rate of offenders taking House Arrest. Observations generated from this report include:
All fifteen counties utilized Fines, Fees, Jail, Probation, Revoked License and Ignition Interlock consistently as sanctions for DUI offenders. Depending on the DUI offense, fines range from $500 - $2,000, probation ranged from 1-12 months (up to 5 years for DUI 4th .15+), and revoked license ranged from 60 days to 15 years for DUI 3rd.15+ and higher cases.
Adams, Buffalo, Dodge, Hall, Lancaster, Madison, Platte, Sarpy, Saunders, Washington and York also sanctioned some type of additional education component in the form of Victim Impact Panel, AA, Alcohol Education and/or Attitudinal Dynamics). A few counties did sentence Community Service.
Lancaster County was the main county to utilized House Arrest as a sanction. Of the 315 cases found guilty, 67% of those offenders received House Arrest.
Ignition Interlock was ordered for 96% of the adjudicated cases. There is no way for MADD to know if the offender had the device installed in their car or for how long.
Adams, Buffalo, Hall, Lincoln and Phelps Counties utilized Probation to the Court primarily for DUI 1st, DUI 1st .15+ and DUI 2nd offences.
MADD will continue to analyze DUI cases and sanctions and build on this database. Volunteers will continue to be trained to attend court, and staff will keep talking with community partners and strengthening relationships. Education is a vital component of the Court Monitoring program.