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Topic : 05/18 DUI Outrage

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Created on : Thursday, May 14, 2009, 06:32:42 pm
Author : DrPhilBoard1
A drunk driving fatality happens approximately every 40 minutes. Therate of alcohol-related accidents is 22 times higher than the deathrate for American soldiers killed in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. Whyis a person with one, two or more DUI's allowed to get behind the wheelof a car? Is the system failing to protect us? Recently, Nick Adenhart,a pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, was killed in a crashinvolving an alleged drunk driver. But he wasn't the only person wholost his life. His friends Courtney Stewart and Henry Pearson were alsokilled, and Jon Wilhite was left in critical condition. Hear Courtney'smom, Carrie, tell the tragic story of how her only daughter was"murdered" by a man who was reportedly driving with a suspended licenseand had one DUI conviction. Next, Mary was in the car with her husbandand 22-year-old son when they were hit by a drunk driver, and the youngman was killed. Mary is now a representative for Mothers Against DrunkDriving (MADD). Then, Dawn is a repeat offender with two DUIs. Shespent a night in jail, had a breathalyzer installed in her car and paidover $12,000 in legal fees, but says she still occasionally drivesafter drinking. Will she put down the bottle after Dr. Phil gives her awake-up call, and she meets Carrie and Mary? Also joining thediscussion is Jeanine Pirro, a hard-hitting, lock-'em-up judge who saysAmericans should be outraged and repeat offenders should be locked up,and Neil Shouse, a high-powered DUI defense attorney who says peopleare overzealous in prosecuting drunk drivers. Are drunk driving lawsharsh enough? You decide. And, do you know when you've reached thelegal blood-alcohol limit? Dr. Phil gives you pertinent information soyou know when you've tossed back too many. Join the discussion.

Find out what happened on the show.
As of January, 2009, this message board will become "Read Only" and will be closed to further posting. Please join the NEW Dr. Phil Community to continue your discussions, personalize your message board experience, start a blog and meet new friends.

 
pinklexisophie
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May 23, 2009, 11:36 am PDT

05/18 DUI Outrage

Quote From: slabat

I believe that all vehicles should come standard with the device you have to blow in to start the car. I wish the auto industry would invest in the people that buy their vehicles and make our highways safer. I wonder how many lives would be saved??? Also, for those who are under-educated about how much alcohol is too much for them, this device would help teach them what their limit is and prevent impaired driving.

AMEN!
 
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pinklexisophie
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May 23, 2009, 12:00 pm PDT

05/18 DUI Outrage

Quote From: constancesmom

All i got 2 say is..if you drink in drive i hope you burn!!..serioulsly!!...its been almost 3 yrs since my big brother was killed n he was 18!!..he didn't deserve this!..n the man that killid him was a illegal mexican with no driver lic. or anything for that matter!!..he dont remember hitting my brother that night!..n all he was was 15 years which means he only serves 5!

Nothin is the same now...he will never b a father or anything...he aint evn here 2 see his lil niece being born in september!

I think they need 2 be punished in the worse way they can...if they kill someone why should they be out here with us? they need 2 b in jail the rest of there life!!...we cant get our loved ones bac so why should they be able 2 be out of jail with theres!! 

I am so sorry for your loss, I too was hit by a drunk driver who was illegal, deported once, no license, ran from the scene....... i could go on and on, he is in jail but his trial has not begun.  I call 2-3 times a week to make sure he is still in there.  I will never be able to drive again, and we not sure about the walking part, i still have numerous dr appts. to go and surgeries, but at least i'm alive, unlike your brother, it sounds like ur family lost a wonderful young man, God Bless You and your family, and I am sorry
 
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shelly_80
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May 23, 2009, 8:34 pm PDT

05/18 DUI Outrage

Quote From: leogorky

This woman is clueless...she is in no way ready to get sober...she's still in too much denial. Unfortunately, her "bottom" may come only with someone else's death. Why does she have a driver's license or car?

You hit the nail on the head.  I hate to be the one to come to this presumption, but it's people like Dawn that provide (what is supposed to be) OUR "law enforcement" with a paycheck.  It's job security for them and it pisses me off.  Nothing more, nothing less!  It's absolutely unfathomable the opportunities afforded to people like Dawn to kill an Innocent family.  I always think about the defenseless children that can't even see it coming. And the parents/guardians are definitely defenseless too! It breaks my heart into a million little pieces.  Why people don't think about the harm they COULD CAUSE before it's too late, I'll never know.  And the most maddening part about it is people think it's their right to drive drunk. 

 
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cadescove99
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May 24, 2009, 6:31 am PDT

05/18 DUI Outrage

Quote From: slabat

I believe that all vehicles should come standard with the device you have to blow in to start the car. I wish the auto industry would invest in the people that buy their vehicles and make our highways safer. I wonder how many lives would be saved??? Also, for those who are under-educated about how much alcohol is too much for them, this device would help teach them what their limit is and prevent impaired driving.
Unless the device has a biometric component that recognizes only the car`s owner any sober person could start the car by doing the blowing and turn the wheel over to the drunk owner. This device is not yet fool proof. I have heard of drunks having their children do the blowing. And them driving drunk with them in the car.
 
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c_r_l_
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May 25, 2009, 7:34 pm PDT

05/18 DUI Outrage

I am outraged that someone thinks that, even though they have had other DUI arrests, they can get away with doing it again and again.  In my opinion, they should have their drivers licenses taken away, they should be locked up like every other criminal, and they should have to give something to the community that they live in.  Also, their cars should be taken away.  I heard on the show that a lady said that the 0.08 limit is stupid.  My response to that is change it to a 0.02 limit.  How would you all like that?
I can honestly say that I have driven under the influence of alcohol and marajuana.  I don't now, because I know what it is like to loose someone to something so stupid that I found it to be a waste of my time and energy.  Even though I act exactly how I act when I'm either sober or under the influence of drugs or alcohol, I DON'T DO IT.  There's always the thought that I could get in a terrible wreck and kill someone- or myself- if I were to drive like that again.
To all those who have lost their loved ones to a DUI driver, my condolences.  I will never drive under the influence of any drug or alcohol again.  You have my word on that.
 
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style3000
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May 25, 2009, 8:49 pm PDT

Prison and Jail not the answer

I found this interesting! “lock them up and throw away the key” approach may feel good to say, but it doesn't work, and it's expensive. The estimated cost to society in 2002 was more than $180 billion and more than $105 billion was associated with drug-related crime.

Substance abuse treatment really does work. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports that substance abuse treatment cuts drug use in half and criminal activity by as much as 80 percent. Now this might not mean much if drug or alcohol abuse has never touched your life or the life of a family member, but then again, you might have to be from another planet for this to be true. Down here, drug and alcohol abuse ruins lives by fragmenting our most basic unit of society, the family. It causes physical, emotional and sexual trauma on a daily basis. This is documented repeatedly by the assessment process.  

So, if treatment is so successful, why have so many communities resisted offering comprehensive treatment programs? Well, for one, addiction is still seen by many as a behavioral defect that requires the individual to take personal responsibility.  

Incarcerating an emotionally dysfunctional person isn't going to cure their emotional dysfunction. Treatment addresses these issues and the inappropriate coping skill of drug and alcohol use. Yes, drug and alcohol abuse is a coping skill for those lacking the tools to cope appropriately. Those who have felt the pain of physical, emotional and sexual abuse can identify with these words.  

Why are our judicial and legislative personnel so addicted to incarceration? The only thing that appears to make sense is their desire to be re-elected, and the lock-them-up message is easy to communicate, playing on emotions, not logic.  

Data shows it's less expensive to provide comprehensive treatment than to let individuals sit in our prisons and jails. Every dollar invested in treatment yields a return of $4 to $7 in reduced drug-related crimes.  

A disease is a disease. Imagine telling the diabetic that he is responsible for curing his own disease, without the help of a professional. I've yet to see an addict who wanted to be addicted. Incarceration jail or prison sentences for alcohol offenses, in spite of their great popularity, appear to be little value in dettering high bac drivers. It appears we cant jail our way out of the problem.
  
 
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cactusgirl4u
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May 25, 2009, 10:17 pm PDT

DUI

I am so frustrated with a judge that says that a severe crackdown in putting people in jail will help this DUI dilemma!!! Do you beat your children into submission?....NO...so putting people in jail who choose to have a beer with a hoagie or wine with a lovely dinner before they understand that one drink will put you in jail will work?....Education is the power...where is the extensive education before a person gets into trouble?
I have taught a (TSS) mandated class in AZ for DUI offenders for 13 years.
This is a zero tolerance state which means .08 is not the deciding factor for a DUI......it is impaired to the slightest degree in this state.....02 to .08 is impaired to the slightest degree. Your viewers are getting the wrong message when you give the amts. someone can drink and the time involved to avoid a DUI!
 
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cadescove99
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May 27, 2009, 9:21 am PDT

05/18 DUI Outrage

Quote From: style3000

I found this interesting! lock them up and throw away the key approach may feel good to say, but it doesn't work, and it's expensive. The estimated cost to society in 2002 was more than $180 billion and more than $105 billion was associated with drug-related crime.

Substance abuse treatment really does work. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration reports that substance abuse treatment cuts drug use in half and criminal activity by as much as 80 percent. Now this might not mean much if drug or alcohol abuse has never touched your life or the life of a family member, but then again, you might have to be from another planet for this to be true. Down here, drug and alcohol abuse ruins lives by fragmenting our most basic unit of society, the family. It causes physical, emotional and sexual trauma on a daily basis. This is documented repeatedly by the assessment process.  

So, if treatment is so successful, why have so many communities resisted offering comprehensive treatment programs? Well, for one, addiction is still seen by many as a behavioral defect that requires the individual to take personal responsibility.  

Incarcerating an emotionally dysfunctional person isn't going to cure their emotional dysfunction. Treatment addresses these issues and the inappropriate coping skill of drug and alcohol use. Yes, drug and alcohol abuse is a coping skill for those lacking the tools to cope appropriately. Those who have felt the pain of physical, emotional and sexual abuse can identify with these words.  

Why are our judicial and legislative personnel so addicted to incarceration? The only thing that appears to make sense is their desire to be re-elected, and the lock-them-up message is easy to communicate, playing on emotions, not logic.  

Data shows it's less expensive to provide comprehensive treatment than to let individuals sit in our prisons and jails. Every dollar invested in treatment yields a return of $4 to $7 in reduced drug-related crimes.  

A disease is a disease. Imagine telling the diabetic that he is responsible for curing his own disease, without the help of a professional. I've yet to see an addict who wanted to be addicted. Incarceration jail or prison sentences for alcohol offenses, in spite of their great popularity, appear to be little value in dettering high bac drivers. It appears we cant jail our way out of the problem.
  

Your post is off-topic, but I'll get to that in a moment.
First, I'll address your "substance-abuse-is-a disease-a-disease-so-we-can't-hold-the-addict-responsible" nonsense. You espouse treatment for substance abuse. Yet you disagree with those who consider addiction "a behavior defect that requires the individual to take personal responsibility"
Anyone who becomes addicted to anything is responsible for their addiction. This isn't rocket science. It's common sense. It's reality. Taking that first drink, that first hit, was a personal choice. A conscious, deliberate decision.
And, taking personal responsibility is a principal requirement for any successful treatment program. Without it, we can no better rehab than jail our way out of problem.
Now, for the show topic, drunk driving. Drunk drivers must be gotten, and kept off, our roads. And if, for some of them, it takes "locking them up and throwing away the key" so be it! Our roads must be kept safe for the innocent motorists, passengers, bicyclists, and pedestrians traveling them every day.
So, do you propose that these drunk drivers lose their licenses until they successfully complete the treatment you espouse? Or, do you think that would be an infringement on their "rights"?
Your heart bleeds too much for the drunk drivers. It ought to bleed for the people they kill and maim.
 
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afraid
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June 2, 2009, 12:00 pm PDT

never ever do what the tv says is ok when the LAW says differnt

Quote From: no1getsit

Maybe if TV would take shows off of the air that shows binge drinking and maybe if we stopped advertising drinking, Ie, NASCAR, shows on collage kids drinking, selling beer etc on  TV , and on and on. Maybe if we made drinking taboo like TV has smoking,ie TV cant show anyone smoking, NASCAR can no longer have tobacco products on their cars etc. Lets make drinking as bad as it is instead of showing people how cool it is to drink to the point you pass out or throw up . TV needs to STOP advertising alcohol on the air. Why it is ok to show and sell alcohol on TV and not tobacco, one is just as bad if not worst then the other, at least when you smoke you don't put other people at risk by getting behind the wheel of a car and trying to drive when you cant even remember your name. TV ,,STOP the alcohol, beer ads PERIOD!!

 

Also maybe the law makers need to back off of rising the tobacco tax every other day and start increasing the tax on Alcohol, maybe if they do this people wont be able to afford alcohol therefore they wont go to a bar and drink for 8hrs and try and drive home.

 

LAWMAKERS LEAVE THE SMOKES ALONE AND GO AFTER THE DRINKER<they are more of a danger behind a wheel then smokers.

using the tv as the reason people drink and drive is well you know, the drunk before hand cant be told he or she cant drive, hell no drunk will listen to you, but when there ass is in jail for such actions they yell the loudest! only problem is this the unfortanant victims of a drunk drivers actions lie in GRAVES-HOSPITALS-WHEELCHAIRS-SO-ON AND SO-ON, thers no excuse in driving drunk!!!! even if you never had a accident, YET. the odds are against a family when a drunk is at the helm of ANY motor vehical, PLEASE THINK B4 YOU DRINK= HAVE A PLAN TO GET FROM POINT-A-TO POINT-B AND DONT BE A PART OF THE PROBLEM BUT INSTEAD BE A PART TO THE SOULTION.
 
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nrshepherd
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June 17, 2009, 1:07 pm PDT

DUI

A man charged in Las Vegas with driving under the influence resulting in the death of an 18-year-old college student after a head-on collision on April 15, 2009 had his bail reduced from $250,000 to $100,000. The man's friends wrote letters to the judge saying he "is a responsible father, husband and friend for whom a DUI was out of character." (http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/jun/17/judge-reduces-bail-man-charged-dui-death-unlv-stud/)

What do you think of his bail being reduced?
 
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