Semi-Structured Interviews - Local Law Enforcement

Attachment 10

Semi-Structured Interview Guide to be used with

Local Law Enforcement Agencies

Form Approved

OMB No. 0920-XXXX

Exp. Date:

Public Reporting burden of this collection of information is estimated at 60 minutes per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden to CDC/ATSDR Reports Clearance Officer, 1600 Clifton Road NW, MS D-74, Atlanta, GA 30333; Attn: PRA (0920-XXXX).

Introduction

The RAND Corporation is conducting a study for the Centers for Disease Control on the costs and cost savings of motor vehicle injury prevention. As part of this study, we are estimating the costs of implementing several different policies and programs designed to prevent such injuries. As the email regarding the request for an interview indicated, much of the cost information we need can be gathered from reviews of the literature; however, we are finding gaps in literature that we hope to fill through interviews. Feel free to pass on any topics you do not know well but I will ask you for a recommendation for a suitable person to interview about that topic.

We will not attribute any specific response to you personally. You will only be identified in the final report as someone that we spoke with in the course of the study. My questions are organized by specific policies or interventions and the entire interview should take about an hour.

My first set of questions deals with Sobriety Checkpoints. As you know these are predetermined locations at which law enforcement officers stop vehicles to determine whether the driver is impaired.

1. How many hours do officers typically serve at a sobriety checkpoint?

2. How many officers typically staff a sobriety checkpoint? In addition, how many checkpoints typically comprise a sobriety checkpoint “event”?

3. How does the number of officers impact the amount of cars stopped?

4. Do you see a proportionate decrease in effectiveness when there are fewer officers?

5. Does publicity increase or decrease effectiveness?

6. We are also interested in costs for equipment, such as Breathalyzers/ cameras/ videos/ cones/ traffic warning devices. Which of these items do departments such as yours typically have already and which do they need to invest in?

7. We plan to include the following in our estimation of costs of implementing sobriety checkpoints: creating legislation, publicity, police time, jail/ prison, court system, fine / fees? What if anything is missing? Are we including too much?

Next I want to ask you about Saturation Patrols – also known as blanket patrols – when a large number of law enforcement officers patrol a specific area for a set time to increase visibility of enforcement.

8. In a typical saturation patrol, how many officers participate, for how many hours?

9. How frequently (per month, per year) would this this happen?

10. How do the costs vary from sobriety checkpoints?

11. What is the typical fine/ fee for an offender who is caught?

12. Is any special equipment purchased particularly for these patrols? For instance, additional Breathalyzers? Digital video recorders or cameras?

13. If so, which and how many of these items is required to support a patrol? How does it scale – does every patrol need its own equipment?

14. Is this equipment already in the hands of police or specially purchased for the efforts?

I have a general question about how much time it typically takes to deal with certain state policies or program from the law enforcement agency perspective.

15. About how much police time does it take to deal with the offenders to the following laws (include on scene, court, and paperwork time):

1. Motorcycle helmet law?

2. Bicycle helmet law?

3. Lower BAC limits law?

4. Vehicle impoundment law?

5. License plate sanctions law?

6. Child safety restraint or seat belt use law?

16. Finally, do you end up spending any time on offenders with interlocks?