Data were collected via review of project records, observations, and onsite interviews with important personnel. The innovative program, called the Prosecutors' Alternative to Court Trial (PACT), was intended to manage a large volume of drunk driving cases and to provide an incentive for offenders to take part in alcohol therapy. In addition, PACT was a comprehensive plea bargaining program designed to provide an expedient, uniform, and fair method of classifying and diverting drunk driving offenders into a short term alcohol rehabilitation program and to avoid a mandatory jail sentence. Defendants were required to take part in the rehabilitation program before the charges were reduced. Although PACT initially provoked controversy, its success later caused its acceptance by the city attorney, who had initially opposed it. During 1975, the program's first full year of operation, almost all of those arraigned on a drunk driving charge pleaded not guilty, and 82 percent subsequently enrolled in education or rehabilitation programs as a result of plea bargaining. Under PACT, 93.2 percent of all offenders received final sentencing within 6 months, compared to 74.5 percent under the old procedure. PACT also reduced the number of appeals of drunk driving convictions from 641 in 1973 to 9 in 1975. Results supported seven hypotheses. For example, increased arrest rates tend to improve court procedures by requiring standardization of case processing, and absence of centralized records on previous arrests or convictions for drunk driving offenses will be a major hindrance to reducing such offenses. One figure and a copy of the PACT agreement are included. For related case studies and a technical report, see NCJ 72944-47 and 72949. (Author abstract modified)