A time series evaluation of California's 1982 driving-under-the-influence legislative reforms.

This study evaluated the impact of 1982 legislative reforms, including enhanced penalties, greater sentencing uniformity, and the introduction of an illegal per se standard, on California's driving-under-the-influence (DUI) countermeasure system. Intervention time series analysis was used to evaluate the general deterrent effects of these laws, as measured by alcohol-related fatal and injury accident rates, both statewide and in counties sharing similar demographic and enforcement patterns. In combination with the legislative effects, analyses also assessed the significance of prelegislative publicity associated with an emerging antidrunk driving sentiment largely popularized by the formation of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). Both implementation of the DUI statutes and the publicity and societal dynamics surrounding the creation of MADD were found to be associated with reductions in subsequent alcohol-related fatal and injury accident rates, with evidence of more pronounced effects among injury accidents.