What are Victim Impact Panels (VIPs)

Victim Impact Panels are two-hour long classes that a court may require someone charged with DUI to attend as a part of that person's sentencing. VIPs involve friends or relatives of a victim, or a victim himself, telling a group of DUI offenders the outcomes of an alcohol-related traffic accident. The hope is that after hearing the stories, a DUI offender will never, ever drink and drive again.

Panels are arranged by MADD and run by police officers. As Mothers Against Drunk Drivers explains, "The concept of the VIP is not for MADD to point fingers or to place blame, rather it is our effort to raise awareness and change the thinking and behavior of those present".

But are Victim Impact Panels effective in actually reducing DUI/DWI? Research says they do not and there is evidence that these panels may even be counter-productive. In fact, one study showed "female repeat offenders referred to VIPs were significantly more likely to be re-arrested compared with those not referred, with an odds of rearrest more than twice that of females not referred."

But if you've been ordered by a court to attend a panel, do what you are told.  Click here to find a panel in Gwinnett County and in the Metro Atlanta area.

For a list of reserach about the efficacy of the panels, see http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/drivingissues/references/1070653181.html#1 

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