TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Carrying The Fight To Drunk Drivers

ADVERTISEMENT

By LAURA DEAN-MOONEY

The Tampa Tribune

Published: July 3, 2008

We had the most amazing "Walk Like MADD" event on Saturday in Tampa with hundreds of supporters turning out in support of MADD's Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving.

We aim to eliminate drunk driving through support for increased enforcement efforts, such as checkpoints and alcohol ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers.

Just this year, the Florida Legislature approved interlocks for all offenders at .15, and while this is a tremendous lifesaving step, ultimately we need interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers.

According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Florida's families are sharing the road with 108,853 drunk drivers with three or more DUI convictions, and of those, 13,054 with five or more convictions. We know people typically drive drunk 87 times before they are ever caught - making them quite the "professional" upon first arrest.

We need to stop this revolving door early and make offenders prove they can drive sober. Interlocks reduce repeat drunk driving offenses by an average of 64 percent.

The American Beverage Institute (ABI) continues taking pot shots at the Campaign and now claims proven scientific research and statistics are wrong. according to its article "A Sober Look At Drunk Driving Stats," (Commentary, June 29). To what lengths will they go? The numbers used nationally to show the extent of the drunk driving problem are those numbers where a driver at .08 blood alcohol concentration (BAC) or above were involved in a fatal crash and provided by the National Center for Statistical Analysis under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. These are drunk driving fatalities. There are no ifs, ands or buts about it.

Additionally, there are countless injuries. About half a million are injured in alcohol-related traffic fatalities each year (crashes involving any measurable amount of alcohol). Also, ABI mentions that checkpoints cost too much money and are ineffective. Not true. Many studies, including those by the Centers for Disease Control, say checkpoints when conducted frequently and are highly publicized help reduce alcohol-related traffic fatalities and crashes by up to 24 percent.

If all of this is still not convincing, let me share two names: Mike and Grace. Grace was only nine months old when she was killed in Florida by a drunk driver in 2000 as she and her brother were being pushed down the street in her stroller. Mike was killed in Texas by a drunk driver in 1991 around Thanksgiving time while returning from a business trip. He left behind a grieving wife and an 8-month-old daughter. The wife was named Laura. That is me.

I managed to pick up the pieces after that horrific event by volunteering for MADD for nearly a decade and now I am honored to serve as MADD's national president. My daughter is now 17. She misses the birth father she never had the chance to know.

Drunk driving is 100 percent preventable. Florida is taking strong action but must toughen interlocks and conduct more checkpoints to be successful in protecting all its citizens.

Laura Dean-Mooney is national president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT