A Two Year Prospective Study of Rearrests for Drunken Driving

Abstract

393 drunken drivers, arrested within a six-month period in 1984/85, were selected for a prospective study of rearrests for drunken driving. Within the following two years, 119 (30%) of the drivers were rearrested. They were responsible for 232 detected drunken driving offences. The rear-rest rate increased with increasing blood alcohol concentration (measured at the time of selection). The rearrest rate was greater for those with elevated blood gamma glutamyltransferase (a marker of excessive alcohol consumption), and was markedly greater for those with more than one arrest for drunken driving preceding the observation period.