Self-selection Policing and the Disqualified Driver

Previous research has identified those who commit serious driving offences, such as driving while over the legal limit for alcohol, dangerous and reckless driving, and driving while legally disqualified, as more likely to engage in other types of criminality, including serious offences, than their non-serious driving offender counterparts. Furthermore, those who continue to drive while disqualified have been singled out as the most likely group of serious driving offenders to be involved in a wide array of different types of offending and at rates more consistent with mainstream criminals than those who simply commit other driving-related offences. The present study builds on previous findings by focusing explicitly on the offending versatility of a sample of 50 disqualified drivers, the different categories of crime they commit, and the recency of other offences relative to the driving whilst disqualifying offence. With an overwhelming percentage of the sample found to have convictions for other types of offences, the study concludes with the suggestion that although driving while disqualified should be considered a trigger offence in self-selection policing, several anticipated obstacles to implementation must first be removed before it can be firmly integrated into current police practice.