Anacortes Mt Vernon Skagit County DUI Attorney: Special License Plates or Plate Markings

Anacortes Mt Vernon Skagit County DUI Attorney:  Special License Plates or Plate Markings

This week it has been released that legislation introduced by Rep. Norma Smith of Clinton, Washington State, would require that drivers pay an additional $100 for the Z-plate, which would be good for three years. The drivers would be allowed to drive only a vehicle with a Z-designated plate.

Brilliant stuff!  However, and unfortunately, Rep. Smith has failed to really do her homework.  Truth is that Washington (and Oregon) once tried this.  The law was coined the "Zebra Tag" law and failed!  The license plate sanction had no effect in Washington!  Politicians should learn that this type of law has little to no effect.  There are programs that work and this one is a waste of time.

The following is information from the award winning book, DUI/DWI: The History of Driving Under the Influence" that directly addresses this very issue.  It is not so novel after all.

Back in the 1990s neighboring states Oregon and Washington enacted what was coined the "Zebra Tag" law. This law allowed police officers to take the driver's vehicle registration when apprehending a driver who did not have a valid license. NHTSA. Traffic Safety Facts Laws - Vehicle and License Plate Sanctions. DOT HS 810 880 (January 2008). In each case, the driver was given a temporary registration certificate, and a striped ("Zebra") sticker was placed over the annual sticker on the vehicle's rear vehicle license plate. During the program the Zebra Tag law was applied to approximately 7,000 offenders in Washington and 31,000 in Oregon. The study in Oregon concluded that suspended DUI offenders at risk of being "tagged" if caught driving were found to have fewer moving violations and accidents under the Zebra Tag law than were reinstated DUI offenders not at risk for "driving while licensed suspended" (DWLS) or being tagged. Presumably the drivers were in fear of being watched more closely so they drove more carefully. Additionally, the study found that those DWLS offenders in Oregon who had their vehicle plates tagged had lower rates of DUI offenses, moving violations, and repeat DWLS offenses than similarly eligible offenders whose vehicle plates were not tagged. NHTSA believed that "tagging the vehicle had a specific deterrent effect that reduced illegal driving." Conversely, according to NHTSA the law did not have a significant impact in Washington. Voas, Robert and A. Scott Tippetts, A.S. "Unlicensed Driving by DUIs – A Major Safety Problem?" TRB ID No. CR077. Paper presented at the 73rd Annual Meeting, Transportation Research Board, Landover, MD (January 9-13, 1994)

For information on your DUI please contact our Snohomish County DUI attorneys, Whatcom County DUI attorneys, King County DUI attorneys, Island County DUI attorneys, Skagit County DUI attorneys, Mt Vernon DUI attorneys, Everett DUI attorneys, Lynnwood DUI attorneys, Mukilteo DUI attorneys, Bothell DUI Attorneys, or Anacortes DUI attorneys at 425-493-1115 or check out our website at http://www.washdui.com

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