
For the past several years, the Texas Center for the Judiciary has received a grant from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to help educate judges who hear DWI cases. One of the goals during the first year of the TxDOT grant was to survey judges to determine how DWI cases are being handled across the state and inquire into the judges’ attitudes toward sentencing, sanctions, treatment, license suspensions and provisional licenses, and breath interlock devices. In 2006 the first survey was sent to 223 misdemeanor judges across the state, and their responses have been previously summarized and reported. One of the goals of our current TxDOT grant is to resurvey judges to determine how DWI cases are being handled across the state, inquire about their impaired driving concerns, and find out how to better meet their educational needs in relation to impaired driving cases, alcohol monitoring devices (interlock, SCRAM, etc.), occupational licenses, and intensive supervision dockets (DWI Courts).	In 2008, surveys were sent to 376 Texas judges who hear criminal cases. The survey population was selected because there are 222 constitutional county courts in Texas that hear all civil, criminal, and original and appellate actions prescribed by law. In addition, the 445 Texas District courts have original jurisdiction in all felony criminal cases, juvenile matters, divorce cases, cases involving title to land, election contest cases, civil matters exceeding $200 or $500 in which the amount in controversy is greater than $200, and any matters in which jurisdiction is not placed in another trial court. Although there are 13 designated criminal district courts in Texas, 154 district court judges in the Texas Center judicial database were coded as hearing criminal and civil cases. Individual comments and responses to many of the questions are included in Appendix A, and all responses are summarized in this article.

For the past several years, the Texas Center for the Judiciary has received a grant from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to help educate judges who hear DWI cases.

One of the goals during the first year of the TxDOT grant was to survey judges to determine how DWI cases are being handled across the state and inquire into the judges’ attitudes toward sentencing, sanctions, treatment, license suspensions and provisional licenses, and breath interlock devices. In 2006 the first survey was sent to 223 misdemeanor judges across the state, and their responses have been previously summarized and reported.

One of the goals of our current TxDOT grant is to resurvey judges to determine how DWI cases are being handled across the state, inquire about their impaired driving concerns, and find out how to better meet their educational needs in relation to impaired driving cases, alcohol monitoring devices (interlock, SCRAM, etc.), occupational licenses, and intensive supervision dockets (DWI Courts).

In 2008, surveys were sent to 376 Texas judges who hear criminal cases. The survey population was selected because there are 222 constitutional county courts in Texas that hear all civil, criminal, and original and appellate actions prescribed by law. In addition, the 445 Texas District courts have original jurisdiction in all felony criminal cases, juvenile matters, divorce cases, cases involving title to land, election contest cases, civil matters exceeding $200 or $500 in which the amount in controversy is greater than $200, and any matters in which jurisdiction is not placed in another trial court.

Although there are 13 designated criminal district courts in Texas, 154 district court judges in the Texas Center judicial database were coded as hearing criminal and civil cases. Individual comments and responses to many of the questions are included in Appendix A, and all responses are summarized in this article.