Bond, Patrick

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DigitalCommons@C.O.D.

The Prairie Light ReviewVolume 2 | Number 3 Article 13Spring 6-3-1983Don't Mix Your Drinks...With Your Driving!Patrick BondCollege of DuPageFollow this and additional works at: https://dc.cod.edu/plrThis Selection is brought to you for free and open access by the College Publications at DigitalCommons@COD. It has been accepted for inclusion inThe Prairie Light Review by an authorized editor of DigitalCommons@COD. For more information, please contact orenick@cod.edu.Recommended CitationBond, Patrick (1983) "Don't Mix Your Drinks...With Your Driving!," The Prairie Light Review: Vol. 2 : No. 3 , Article 13.Available at: https://dc.cod.edu/plr/vol2/iss3/13Prairie Light Review, Page 7DON'T MIX YOUR DRINKS. . .WITH YOUR DRIVING!by Patrick BondDrinking and driving has become a tradition in Americansociety. We have come to regard drinking and driving as abasic right. This is true for everyone from teenagers experi-menting with their first taste of beer to business people andtheir three martini lunches.It's time to put an end to this tradition and examine thefrightening statistics.Last year, alcohol related traffic accidents claimed thelives of 26,000 people in the U.S. On an average weekend inthis country, one out of every ten cars on the road is drivenby a legally intoxicated person.The drunken driver is a menace — he is a threat not onlyto himself but to everyone in his destructive path as well.Kelly Schuette, unfortunately, is a statistic of one suchmenace. Mark and Bonnie Schuette’s only child, their 4V2-year-old daughter, was playing dolls in the family’s front yardwhen she was struck by a speeding auto. The driver of theauto was intoxicated. . .Kelly died; en route to the hospital.The driver of the vehicle had his license revoked for a threemonth period and received a fine of $284 for operating avehicle while under the influence of alcohol.I do not think that this nominal fee can be justified incompens.ating for a lost human life.Let's face it, our society tolerates, if not promotes, the useof alcohol as a socially acceptable refreshment. And, in orderto get from your place of refreshment — be it a bar, restaur-ant or what have you, back to your home or office, a car is apopular means of transport.Unfortunately, to a drunken driver behind the wheel, a carcan be a very dangerous weapon.We have, through our laws and the enforcement ofthem, promoted a leniency toward the drunken driver.States’ drunk driving laws need to be tightened and morerigidly enforced in order to protect the real victim — thoseinjured and killed by the drunken driver.While they vary from state to state, under the presentlaw persons convicted of operating a motor vehicle whileintoxicated face mandatory license revocation, fines up to$2,000 and sentences up to one year in jail. The terms of thesentence vary depending on the number of prior convictionson the driver.Although stricter laws are definitely needed, a redefinitionof the penal system itself is necessary. Frequently, prose-cutors are able to plea bargain the penalties and sanctionsthat the law imposes on the offender. Often, the penalty ispartially suspended and instead the driver is required toattend a traffic safety school or an alcohol treatment facility.In theory this appears to be a feasible solution. Allevi-ating the problem at its roots. In practice, however, thissolution fails to achieve its objective. The problem stemsfrom the fact that there is insufficient enforcement for thesesubstitute penalties. Drivers often fail to attend these schoolsafter their initial visit. The courts have failed to provide aneffective means of ensuring drivers’ participation in theprogram. This renders the program a virtual farce.Frequently, therefore, convicted drivers only pay a smallfine and after a temporary revocation of their license, thedriver is back behind the wheel.In order to remedy this situation, we need to somehowlimit prosecutors from reducing charges in drunken drivingcases.Repeat offenders need to be more strictly dealt with aswell.This is a serious problem and one which our penal systemshould afford just consideration.We must protect those who do not drink and drive fromthose who do.— Mark PfeffermanTwelve years ago, Joe Quinn was a typical carefree 17year-old. Co-captain of his high school football team and anabove average student, Joe seemingly had his world by thetail.Today, Joe is unable to walk without the aid of a cane, hisspeech is slurred almost to the point of being incomprehen-sible and his brain is significantly damaged.On his way home from football practice on that cool autumnevening, Joe’s red Vega was demolished in a head on collisionwith a car driven by a man who was legally intoxicated.The man was charged with driving while under the influ-ence of alcohol and ordered to attend a safe driving program.The man drove his car home from the police station after theincident.Joe has not driven an automobile since October 23, 1970.Joe’s case is not unique in drunk driving incidents.It is unique in the fact that Joe is my cousin.1Bond: Don't Mix Your Drinks...With Your Driving!Published by DigitalCommons@COD, 1983

Don\u27t Mix Your Drinks...With Your Driving!

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Don\u27t Mix Your Drinks...With Your Driving!

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