MADD’s Court Monitoring Program enlists court monitors to observe and document what happens in the courtroom during impaired driving case proceedings. The program was created to ensure that impaired driving offenders are prosecuted and justice is achieved. Court monitoring is a tool proven to affect the adjudication process and is recognized by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as an effective countermeasure to reduce impaired driving 1 . Court monitors on the local scale can
impact the handling of impaired driving cases by their mere presence in the court room. Court monitoring is intended to enhance transparency and accountability within the criminal justice system and reduce the likelihood of repeat offenses. One way this goal is achieved is by sharing data and observations with law enforcement, judges, prosecutors, and the public to promote awareness of impaired driving and ensure accountability for all impaired driving offenders. To reduce future offenses, MADD® supports swift and unbiased treatment of all impaired driving cases. 1 Richard, C. M., Magee, K., Bacon-Abdelmoteleb, P., & Brown, J. L. (2018, April). Countermeasures that work: A highway safety countermeasure guide for State Highway Safety Offic- es, Ninth edition (Report No. DOT HS 812 478). Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Volunteers monitor impaired driving cases in Loudoun County, Virginia. The data collected is then entered into the MADD National Court Monitoring Database for reporting purposes.
Virginia State Report (reporting period: (1/1/2020 – 12/31/2020)
This report is designed to present observations and trends relative to 624 Loudoun County cases monitored and is not intended to be a statistical analysis.
Guilty*
546 12 1 2 63
87% 2% <1% <1% 10%
Not Guilty Deferred Prosecution Dismissed Nolle Prosequi**
*Many guilty dispositions resulted with an amendment of the charge (200 of the 546 guilty verdicts 36%). **Nolle prosequi represents a legal action by the prosecution to not pursue a case further (a form of dismissal).
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