The tweets could combat drink-driving in a few different ways. For one, it should illustrate the scale of the problem to anyone following the police accounts, while also making those who are caught come to terms with what they've done after the incident. The idea, of course, is to deter people from driving under the influence, but, if they're caught and publicly shamed, it'll also discourage friends and family members from doing the same. All of this will be happening on Twitter, so the visibility of the officers' messages might be amplified beyond their local area. Staffordshire Police came under fire for a similar campaign, but clearly the forces in Sussex and Surrey believe it's still an appropriate punishment.

[Image Credit: West Midlands Police, Flickr]