Data obtained from driver license files in New York provided a systematic random sample of 13,801 drivers who had at least one driving while intoxicated (DWI) conviction record. Study measures included drunk driving recidivism, punishment severity, punishment celerity, and interaction effects. Findings suggested that an increase in fines significantly decreased the probability of recidivism when license withdrawal was mandatory. Some effect was noted for the swift imposition of fines, but no independent effect was observed for license actions. The lack of impact of license actions may have reflected the association between offense seriousness and license action severity. Overall, punishment severity increased the specific deterrent effect. Implications of the study results for public policies against drunk driving are discussed. Supporting data on New York DWI penalties since 1978 are appended. 44 references, 6 notes, and 3 tables