Essay Review English ESSAY

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            Imagine yourself on a beautiful fall afternoon.  The weather is perfect.  There is a slight breeze, the sun is shining and the air is crisp and cool.  Since you’ve been at home all day, you decide that you want to take your child, go to the local park for a picnic, enjoy a nice walk along some of the trails and watch your child play on the playground equipment.  You can feel the happiness as you walk out the door to get into the car.  The next thing you know, only a few short miles from your home and happiness, you are being crashed into.  You hear metal on metal.  The sound is deafening.  But it’s not more deafening than your child’s scream for her mom.  Then, just as suddenly, there’s silence.  No more metallic sounds.  No more crashing.  No more movement.  The most chilling thing is that there are no more sounds coming from your child.  You’ve just been ran into by a drunk driver; one that has already been arrested and convicted of driving under the influence. This may sound like a bad movie or perhaps a nightmare, however it’s something that many people go through as a reality.  Why was this person out driving again while under the influence?  After all, they have been in trouble for this same issue before.  Did they not learn any lessons?  There may not be a perfect answer to these questions but laws should be tougher and people should feel safer when traveling. Laws need to be straight-laced and firm in order to reduce fatalities and crashes when it comes to driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.  Those convicted of driving under the influence should face harsher punishment so that they never want to commit the act again.

            This issue has clearly been around for a long time.  We’ve come up with laws to try to help combat it, but let’s look at the history a little closer.  Where did it all begin?  According to LifeSafer.com (2013), the first state adopted drunk-driving laws in 1910.  It didn’t take long for the other states to follow in their footsteps.  This first law was rather simple and clearly left much to be desired.  It simply said that one couldn’t operate the vehicle while intoxicated.  At this time, this law wasn’t clearly defined.  Later on during the 1930’s, the American Medical Association created a committee and the National Safety Council began conducting tests.  These two groups were able to find, through research, that a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.15 percent or higher deemed one as inebriated.  This became the first legal limit for BAC.  As the years went on, groups began forming, such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), Fathers Against Drunk Driving (FADD), and Students Against Drunk Driving (SADD). These groups sought stiffer laws and penalties, and for good reason.  MADD was founded in 1980 due to a mother whose 13 year old daughter was killed while on her way home from a school carnival by a drunk driver.  This particular driver already had three previous DUI convictions and was actually out on bail from a hit and run arrest two days prior to this event.  The pressure from these type of groups did in fact lead to changes in the laws.  Some of the most important changes were that the legal drinking age was raised to 21 in all 50 states and the legal limit was lowered from 0.15 to 0.10 percent.   It has since been reduced again to 0.08 percent, but that did not take place until 2000.  Laws requiring automatic license suspension for failing or refusing to take a breath test also spread (Life Safer, 2013). 

            Even though the drinking age was raised to 21, statistics show that automobile accidents are the number one cause of death in young adults ranging in age from 15 – 20, with 28 percent involving alcohol consumption (DrunkDrivingPrevention.com).  Young people need to be educated on how their life will change if they decide to make this choice.  All states have laws that deem it illegal for anyone under 21 to consume alcohol, known as Zero Tolerance Laws.  Younger adults see themselves as indestructible.  The reality is, they are often killed in these accidents.  As parents, we need to make them aware of the dangers, the laws, and the consequences they will face if they choose to go down this road.  You can’t ever replace the advantages of education.  Educating our children, which may be young adults, can have a positive, lasting effect.  Parental involvement along with the zero tolerance laws can work hand in hand in combating this issue.

            Despite many efforts and laws not only put into place, but made tougher through the years, we still have issues with this same problem.  Why?  One issue is that many people do not know what the current laws are.  The latest law that’s been put into place surrounding this issue was in 2012.  Alabama passed its own ignition interlock law.  This law focuses on the repeat, hardcore offenders such as those with high BAC levels of 0.15 or higher.  The fines and jail terms were also increased.  This interlock devices are to be installed for a minimum of two years for the first license revocation.  Several states followed suit with the interlock device laws.  This act recognized that behavioral changes do take time to change.  I found this to be a very open minded view point.  As many of us know, behavioral changes take time to become habit and habits can be hard to break.  This is the main reason why these devices are to be installed for such a lengthy period of time.  That way there is time for the behavioral change to take place.  According to this article, “in 2009, 70% of drivers involved in drunk driving fatalities had a BAC level of .15 or higher” (Life Safer 2013).

            The advantages of the interlock devices being installed mean that the roads are safer.  These devices are reliable and effective.  They attach to the dashboard and the driver breathes into it.  If the device registers an alcohol level above a certain limit, the engine will not start, thus making the roads a safer place by not allowing the driver that is affected able to drive that vehicle (Parris, G. 2014).

As far as changing habits, some may think this is a simple, quick process.  According to James Clear, the common belief that a habit is formed in 21 days, is incorrect (2014).  The actual found fact is that it takes a minimum of 21 days for an old mental image to be replaced with a new one.  This is a far cry from changing a habit.  It was found that it can take more than 66 days for a habit to truly be formed.  And even that can be on the lighter side.  It all depends on the person, circumstances and behavior.  Since alcohol and drugs can both be very addicting, this can take considerable time and effort to change.  It can take close to a year for some people to actually form a new habit (2014).  The main ingredients are dedication and the will to change. The advantages to committing to changing a drinking or drug habit will improve one’s overall health and way of life.  It is a winning situation for all involved.

            People need to know that alcohol and drugs impair judgment and a person’s reasoning Many times a person feels that they aren’t too intoxicated to drive, thus making the decision to go ahead and drive after drinking.  Just because a person doesn’t “feel” drunk or that they have full control of their senses doesn’t mean that they do.  Everyone needs to understand that it’s illegal to drive when your BAC reaches .08 percent. It’s considered to be driving under the influence at that point, regardless if the person feels they are intoxicated or impaired or not (Drunk Driving Prevention.com, 2016).  This is the limit that the government has set and is the law.  It’s important to note that you can also be arrested if other signs of impairment are present, even if your BAC is below the legal limit.  This could take place when drugs were used instead of alcohol.  In this case the BAC would be well below the .08 percent but there could still be impairment due to taking drugs.

            If laws were to change to become more stringent, this would make those who may be thinking of getting behind the wheel after they have partaken either alcohol or drugs, think twice.  The hope would be that before the drink was ever taken, a plan is already in place for a driver or an alternate plan in order to avoid the problem all together.  If the leniency for this offense was almost non-existent, it could greatly benefit everyone from the one taking the drink or drug, as well as the rest of the entire community. 

            According to Drunk Driver Prevention.com, statistics show that one out of 121 licensed drivers are arrest for driving drunk (2016).  It goes on to say that “within two hours of drinking, 772 drivers will be arrested for drunk driving” (2016)  These drivers are 1.4 times more likely to be involved in fatal accidents, with repeat offenders making up one-third of arrests related to drunk driving.  These statistics are alarming.  It is easy to see there is a need for action.         

Sure we are talking about some serious penalties here, but this is a serious crime.  Time after time we hear about crashes or deaths related to driving while under the influence.  There will be enough incidents without the mixture of drugs or alcohol added in.  Both of these things, drugs and alcohol, can be very addicting and has shown to be a growing problem.  Perhaps with heavier fines and penalties, many would choose to stay home instead of getting on the road or even change their habits for the better. 

            Another problem is other places are putting the steeper laws in place, but the United States is lagging behind.  The United States may would benefit from these laws if they put them into place.  According to FADD website, the United States ranks third in the world for the worst countries in relation to drunk driving (2015).  This is both scary and outrageous.  Researchers found that the harsher laws put in place in British Columbia reduced alcohol related fatal crashes by 40 percent (Science Daily, 2014).  There was a 23 percent decrease in alcohol related injury collisions just in the first year of the more rigid laws being put into place according to Science Daily (2014). The article goes on to say that “stronger drunk driving laws lead to safer roads” (2014).  If there are such large benefits from the more severe laws, wouldn’t it make sense for the United States to follow suit in order to help with this problem?  More effort should be taken to put laws in place to help curb the first time offenders and to definitely reduce the repeat offenders (Science Daily, 2014).

            One of the biggest problems with this issue is the repeat offenders.  Everyone needs to be aware of the statistics when it comes to this.  According to the National Highway Safety Commission Administration (NHTSA) “in 1992, more people were arrested in the U.S. for driving under the influence or driving while intoxicated than any other reported criminal offense”(NHTSA).  This amounted to a total of 1.6 million drivers.  From a study that was conducted in California, it was found that 44 percent of every driver convicted of DUI in 1980 was convicted again within ten years.  Studies show over and over again that those convicted of the crime continue to drink and drive despite the laws already in place.  More than 10,000 people died as a result of driving impaired crashes in 2012 alone.  That equates to one person every 51 minutes (NHTSA).

            Let’s take a minute to see how getting a DUI can influence your life at this time from the offenders’ perspective.  Understand both the short term and long term effects that it can have on your life, even if no accidents or others’ lives are untouched.  There will be fines to pay, some very large.  You will get your driver’s license suspended, have an interlock device installed on your vehicle, probation, community service and a good chance of going to jail.  Getting a DUI will give you a criminal record that will follow you throughout your life.  This can make things that are normally simple, become very difficult.  Things such as getting a job, renting an apartment or doing anything that is dependent on a background check can all of sudden be very hard to be able to do due to the criminal record.  Is it worth taking that drink or drug and getting behind the wheel?

            There should be no questions when it comes to this issue.  Jail time should be mandatory when the choice is made to drive once a drink or drug has been taken.  License should be suspended for a year for the first offense.  Sure, this will make it hard on the person, but so much more can be lost by the choice that is being made irresponsibly.  Fines for a first offense should be high and hard to afford.  Court costs should all be paid by the offender.  All states should abide by the same strict laws.  Just being in a different state shouldn’t change the laws for this particular crime.  It’s serious so the results should be just as serious.  When you decide to commit this offense, you are no longer just affecting yourself.  So many more lives are at stake when this choice is made.

            It seems that with the way things currently are, those laws aren’t getting through to those that continue to commit this offense time and time again.  It’s time to step up the game and make the laws no-nonsense.  It’s time to show that we mean business and this is taken seriously.  They should be so strict that one would never want to be in a position to be convicted again.  If better laws were in place across the United States, we would all greatly benefit from it.   Nothing beats being able to get your children and yourself home safely.  With so many people on the roads due to rising population, we need to be as diligent as possible about spreading the knowledge and education.  We need to be proactive so that we can combat this problem.  We need to take a stand and ask that better, more severe laws be put into place.  The streets can be a safer place.  Let’s help get them there.

 

References:

Clear, J. (2014) How long does it actually take to form a new habit? Backed by Science.                             Retrieved from http://jamesclear.com/new-habit

DrunkDrivingPrevention.Com. (2016). Retrieved from http://www.drunkdrivingprevention.com/

FADD - Fathers Against Drunk Driving. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://faddintl.org/index.html

Impaired Driving. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.nhtsa.gov/Impaired

Parris, G. (2014). Ignition Interlock Devices: Pros and Cons - New York Criminal Attorney.         Retrieved from http://gilbertparrislawyer.com/ignition-interlock-devices-pros-cons/

Stronger drunk driving laws lead to safer roads. Science News, (2014). Retrieved from             https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/08/140818095235.htm

 

The History of Drunk Driving Laws in the U.S. • LifeSafer. (2013). Retrieved from             https://www.lifesafer.com/blog/the-history-of-drunk-driving-laws-in-the-u-s/ 

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