There is no concrete data available to show whether Califonia DUI schools actually help prevent further DUI offenses. The effectiveness of a program likely depends on individual students and their willingness to change their drinking patterns.
1. What are California DUI schools?
California has developed an elaborate series of alcohol education programs for DUI offenders.
These range from a 12-hour class for those convicted of a lesser “wet reckless” offense to a 30-month alcohol program for 3rd offense DUI offenders.
Los Angeles County’s 30-month DUI school can entail up to:
- 400 hours of community service,
- group counseling, and
- education sessions.1
The California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs licenses private entities to provide drunk driving programs. Nearly 500 exist throughout the state.
There is one overarching policy goal with these programs: dissuading those convicted of DUI from continuing to drink and drive.
2. Are DUI schools effective?
Very little data exists to measure the effectiveness of California DUI schools.
Probably, as with any type of rehabilitation program, success varies depending on the individual. Further, success will also depend on whether a student sees himself/herself as having an alcohol problem that needs addressing.
Note also that some adults may view an alcohol class as a nuisance imposed on them rather than a welcome opportunity to receive help and guidance. This viewpoint tends only to hurt the effectiveness of a school.
One distinguishing feature of California’s DUI education is that all of the classes are live events. Students attend classes and interact with each other and live instructors. Some states, such as Nevada, only require “online” DUI schools.
Intuitively, one would imagine that live DUI programming changes more behavior than online videos and self-study. But again, few reliable studies can verify this.
Legal References:
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- Refer to our article, “What are the penalties for a first-time DUI in California?“.
