Did you know:  Over 40% of all the 16-to-20 year olds who died were killed in car crashes.  And about half of those were alcohol-related.  That's around 2,222 of your classmates, soccer rivals, prom queens, and friends who died because somebody chose to drink and drive. 

In 1997, 21 percent of the young drivers involved in fatal crashes had been drinking. (NHTSA, 1999) 

These young drivers make up 6.7 percent of the total driving population, but constitute 13 percent of the alcohol-involved drivers in fatal crashes. (NHTSA, 1999) 

Alcohol-related traffic deaths among youth between the ages of 15 and 20 decreased from 2,218 in 1997 to 2,210 in 1998. (NHTSA, 1999) 

More than 35% of all 16-to-20 year-old deaths result from motor vehicle crashes. (NCHS, 1997) 37% were in alcohol-related crashes.  Estimates are that 2,104 persons aged 16-20 died in alcohol-related crashes in 1998. (NHTSA, 1999) 

Between 1988 and 1998, the proportion of drivers 16-to-20 years of age who were involved in fatal crashes, and were intoxicated, dropped 33 percent. 21% in 1988 to 14% in 1990-the largest decrease of any age group during this time period. (NHTSA, 1999) 

Of all persons arrested for DUI/DWI nationally, persons in the under 25 age group accounted for 23.4% of those in the cities, 23.7% of those in the suburban counties and 22.1% of those in the rural counties.  

Approximately 240,000 to 360,000 of the nation's 12 million current undergraduates will ultimately die from alcohol-related causes---more than the number that will get MA's and PhD's combined.  

During a typical weekend, an average of one teenager dies each hour in a car crash.  Nearly fifty percent of those crashes involved alcohol. (NHTSA, 1999) 

Ohio's alcohol-related fatalities totaled 594 (36% of total fatalities). It was at that time the multiple DUI offender program was initiated.  Designed to specifically target the group, which consisted of less than one-third of all offenders but for more than half of all DUI offenses, the multiple/habitual DUI offender program has proven very successful.  

 Ohio's alcohol-related fatalities fell to 325 (down to 24% of total fatalities), 872 of the just over 900 Ohio law enforcement agencies displayed 1-800-GRAB DUI license plates (a Patrol telephone number), DUI arrests were up, over 300 local law enforcement agencies now actively participate in the traffic safety program. The Multiple Offenders Program was introduced in Ohio to five pilot counties  

Habitual offenders have been specifically targeted by post commanders to ensure compliance with Ohio's laws.  Letters are mailed directly to drivers throughout Ohio who have five or more convictions on their driving record and whose licenses are currently under suspension. The letters first encourage the drivers compliance with the laws of Ohio and secondly inform them of our firm commitment to enforce any applicable laws to keep habitually drunk drivers off the highways.  

First, notices are being mailed to each court in which a multiple offender has been sentenced. A multiple offender is defined as an individual with one or more prior convictions on a driving record. This court notice gives the judge an opportunity to summon the multiple offender to account for his/her continued disregard for the laws of the state or the provisions of the court's sentence. Letters are mailed to courts, which have previously convicted the offender along with an affidavit affirming the current charge. This information is often used to reinstate formerly suspended portions of a D.U.I. sentence or to revoke probation.  

Second, courts have supported the division's work with the Targeted Offenders Plan -- instances in which habitual offenders suspected of driving on the highways while in violation of license suspensions are actively sought out. Third, the Patrol has helped to encourage the immobilization of vehicles used by convicted and unlicensed drivers through the loan of immobilization tools... report alcohol impaired drivers, as well as roadside emergencies. Through the combination of both numbers, citizens are encouraged to call to report drunk drivers, as well as drivers who continue to operate a motor vehicle in spite of convictions and license suspensions for impaired driving. 

The whole concept of targeting repeat offenders has been shared with police agencies all over the state including city, township, county, state, and metro park law enforcement officers. The H.O.T. sheets, which contain lists of local habitual offenders, are updated quarterly, and distributed throughout every county in Ohio. In addition, lists of offenders (separated by zip codes) are now accessible upon request to the Patrol's L.E.A.D.S. Programming Section. Their work is being encouraged by the Department of Public Safety and reported in its monthly newsletter, Hot Sheet News.  

Since July 1990, courts have been mandated by Ohio law to collect fines from convicted drunk drivers which are to go directly to the law enforcement agency which made the arrest, to be used to finance the costs of patrols dedicated to apprehending drivers from the H.O.T. sheet. In addition, the Patrol applies for federal funds to supplement expenditures from the D.U.I. fine fund. This gives us the ability to add D.U.I. and D.U.S. enforcement activities to regular patrols rather than take personnel away from other assignments. Other Ohio law enforcement agencies have the ability to use the fine funds in a similar manner.  

A key to the continuing success of the Multiple Offenders Project is the wide range of involvement and cooperation from the public, the media, the legislature, the courts, law enforcement and certainly from habitual offenders themselves. Because this multiple offenders program is targeting repeat offenders, it is believed that the group most responsible for this highway hazard is being reached. 

The Multiple Offender Program has yielded positive results. The rate of increase for the number of multiple offenders is slowing. In 1993, the rate of increase in the number of multiple offenders was six percent; in a comparable time period in 1995, that rate has been cut to three percent. In other words, fewer first-time offenders are receiving a second conviction, fewer second-time offenders are receiving a third conviction, and so on. With the assistance of police agencies throughout Ohio, the following activity was generated from August 1, 1991 through June 1, 1999: 

About one third of all drivers arrested or convicted of DUI each year are repeat offenders.  

Annually, one percent of all licensed drivers are arrested for DUI -- more people than for any other crime.  

Drivers involved in alcohol-related fatal crashes are eight times more likely to have had a drunk driving conviction in the previous five years than drivers randomly selected from the general population.  

As many as one-third of drivers involved in alcohol-related fatal crashes have a prior drunk driving conviction.  

It is estimated that as many as 75 percent of the drivers who have their license suspended for driving under the influence continue to break the law and drive on a suspended license 6,235 habitual DUI offenders (those with five or more DUI convictions) have been arrested 

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