According to an article in the Associated Press, beginning Wednesday, the Honolulu Police Department is testing out a new and controversial method of reducing drunk driving. The plan, which hopes to embarrass drunk drivers, calls for posting mug shots of suspected drunk drivers on the Honolulu Police Department website. Naturally, there are opposing views on the plan.
Quoting from the article:
Supporters say the experiment in public humiliation to be launched Wednesday should be used elsewhere in the nation if it reduces the number of drunks on the road.
Critics counter the photo gallery is a heavy-handed tactic that threatens to violate constitutional rights and stain reputations without court convictions.
“We’re not trying to embarrass anybody,” said police Maj. Thomas Nitta, head of the traffic division. “This is public record, and we want people to be aware of this.”
Defense attorneys doubt the strategy will stop intoxicated drivers from getting behind the wheel.
“There’s no empirical data to show it does anything other than embarrass them,” said attorney Pat McPherson, who handles hundreds of DUI cases a year. “There may be a good intent here, but it doesn’t necessarily make it a good thing and really opens the police up to liability.”
Arrest records and photos are considered to be public records and have been published in newspapers and shown on TV for decades. The Honolulu program is different, however, because the police themselves are publicizing the images.
Perhaps the most compelling argument in the article comes from the American Civil Liberties Union. Citing the possible unconstitutionality of the initiative, Jay Stanley, Jay Stanley, public education director for the ACLU’s technology and liberty program, says
“The police frequently arrest people who do not deserve to be arrested, and in today’s Internet environment having your picture posted on a Web site is something that can stick with you for the rest of your life.”
Drunk driving is a serious offense, and keeping repeat drunk drivers off the road undoubtedly saves lives, but the steps that the Honolulu Police Department have taken are flawed. The right to a fair trial is one of America’s bedrock principles. When an individual is found guilty of a crime, and only then, should a punishment be issued.
Even though the media has shared mugshots on TV and in the news in the past, this is a different situation. By posting mugshots of men and women who have not yet been found guilty of an offense directly on the department’s website, the Honoloulu Police Department is, in many ways, creating a perception of guilt.This is a direct violation of the precept that all people are innocent until proven guilty.
Furthermore, even if the individual is guilty of drunk driving, once they’ve paid their debt to society, shouldn’t they be able to live a normal life? It is hard enough for regular people to get a job in a down economy, imagine how difficult it must be for someone with a permanent reminder of their past mistake on Google? I’m by no means condoning drunk driving. As I said before, it is a serious crime and there should be serious consequences, but not at the expense of personal liberty.
As the internet continues to evolve, the way in which the law enforcement community investigates and prosecutes crimes will change too. We can only hope that as they change, they will keep our individual rights and liberties in mind.
4 comments ↓
[...] According to an article in the Associated Press, beginning Wednesday, the Honolulu Police Department is testing out a new and controversial method of reducing drunk driving. The plan, which hopes to embarrass drunk drivers, .. read more [...]
The people that got arrested for DUI have not had their day in court people are innocent till found guilty. If thats the case why dont they put everyones picture on line that got arrested for other offenses to deter those offenses . DUI is a serious matter but so is going 100 m.p.h.
[...] November, we wrote about a new effort from the Honolulu Police Department to feature suspected drunk drivers on the department’s website. At the time, I wrote that this approach was flawed and that, [...]
[...] November, we wrote about a new effort from the Honolulu Police Department to feature suspected drunk drivers on the department’s website. At the time, I wrote that this approach was flawed and that, [...]
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