Mothers Against Drunk Driving Case
On May 3, 1980 Candy Lightner lost her 13 year old daughter, Cari Lightner, when a drunk driver stuck Cari and killed her tragically. Clarence Bush was the man behind the wheel and Candy Lightner had come to learn that he had a grocery list of arrests for intoxication. Unfortunately, the police officer working on the Cari Lightner case informed Candy that drunk drivers were not prosecuted harshly and Clarenece Busch would unlikely be thrown in jail for his heinous crime (he was eventually founded guilty of vehicular homicide and spent 21 months in jail). With her grief, anger and need for justice, Candy founded MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving).
The purpose of MADD was to create harsher laws and penalties against drunk driving, and later against all driving under the influence of any substance. Candy began this process by lobbying the governor of California, Jerry Brown, to set up a state task force to investigate drunk driving. ("History.com", 2009). Before the end of 1984, significant progress had …show more content…
been made. In 1981, a law had been established fining drunk drivers a minimum of $375 and also mandatory incarceration for repeat offenders. According to “History.com” (2009), President Ronald Reagan soon asked Lightner to serve on the National Commission on Drunk Driving, which recommended raising the minimum drinking age to 21 and revoking the licenses of those arrested for drunk driving. In July 1984, she stood next to Reagan as he signed a law reducing federal highway grants to any state that failed to raise its drinking age to 21 (a change that was estimated to save around 800 traffic deaths annually); by the following year, all 50 states had tightened their drunk-driving laws.” (MADD founder’s daughter killed by drunk driver).
Consuming alcohol has been a social pastime since the lift of prohibition and “having a drink” has become a common activity for people in our culture. In general, social drinking is viewed as an ok thing. What society may not consider when it comes to social drinking, is how many of those social drinkers drink and drive. Which is how social drinking, and heavy drinking for that matter, has led to drunk drivers which has led to a huge social problem. The "Alcohol Problems and Solutions" (1997-2015) website states that the relative risk of death for drivers in single-car crashes with a high BAC (blood alcohol content) is about 400 times that of a zero-BAC driver.
Although MADD may have the facts to create laws and the ability to advocate for them through the volunteers and employees of the group, they unfortunately do not have the authority to enforce the laws.
MADD does however ensure that laws and policies regarding underage drinking, and drunk driving are obeyed. A law that MADD does back is the underage drinking law, but then they are going against another policy they enforce, the marketing of safe ride programs. The group supports the use of non-drinking drivers, designated drivers and public transportation, but when it comes to underage drinkers, supporting those options for underage drinkers goes against what they enforce the illegality of underage drinking. Another law MADD supports is the enforcement and prosecution of the DUID (Driving Under the Influence) laws. Those who are detained and found guilty of DUID receive similar punishments as those with DUIs, depending on severity of the
circumstance.
Unless we are to establish a neo-prohibition of our era, alcohol will continue to be consumed on the regular. In order to properly deal with the issues that come about from the use of alcohol, there must be different preventative avenues taken. The fight against drunk driving has had a positive outcome and more advertising and knowledge against it is widespread in our society. However, drinking alcohol will never cease. And with that, drunken driving will continue to plague our nation. In the human services field, providing knowledge and resources to prevent drunk driving, along with addiction to alcohol and other substances is important. That is just one step in the right direction that someone in the human services field can take.
References:
History.com. (2009). Retrieved from http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/madd-founders-daughter-killed-by-drunk-driver
Alcohol Problems and Solutions. (1997-2015). Retrieved from http://www2.potsdam.edu/alcohol/drinkinganddriving.html#.VQ-iHPnF-LE
MADD 's Position Statements: Other Positions. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.madd.org/about-us/position-statements/madds-position-statements.html
The purpose of MADD was to create harsher laws and penalties against drunk driving, and later against all driving under the influence of any substance. Candy began this process by lobbying the governor of California, Jerry Brown, to set up a state task force to investigate drunk driving. ("History.com", 2009). Before the end of 1984, significant progress had …show more content…
been made. In 1981, a law had been established fining drunk drivers a minimum of $375 and also mandatory incarceration for repeat offenders. According to “History.com” (2009), President Ronald Reagan soon asked Lightner to serve on the National Commission on Drunk Driving, which recommended raising the minimum drinking age to 21 and revoking the licenses of those arrested for drunk driving. In July 1984, she stood next to Reagan as he signed a law reducing federal highway grants to any state that failed to raise its drinking age to 21 (a change that was estimated to save around 800 traffic deaths annually); by the following year, all 50 states had tightened their drunk-driving laws.” (MADD founder’s daughter killed by drunk driver).
Consuming alcohol has been a social pastime since the lift of prohibition and “having a drink” has become a common activity for people in our culture. In general, social drinking is viewed as an ok thing. What society may not consider when it comes to social drinking, is how many of those social drinkers drink and drive. Which is how social drinking, and heavy drinking for that matter, has led to drunk drivers which has led to a huge social problem. The "Alcohol Problems and Solutions" (1997-2015) website states that the relative risk of death for drivers in single-car crashes with a high BAC (blood alcohol content) is about 400 times that of a zero-BAC driver.
Although MADD may have the facts to create laws and the ability to advocate for them through the volunteers and employees of the group, they unfortunately do not have the authority to enforce the laws.
MADD does however ensure that laws and policies regarding underage drinking, and drunk driving are obeyed. A law that MADD does back is the underage drinking law, but then they are going against another policy they enforce, the marketing of safe ride programs. The group supports the use of non-drinking drivers, designated drivers and public transportation, but when it comes to underage drinkers, supporting those options for underage drinkers goes against what they enforce the illegality of underage drinking. Another law MADD supports is the enforcement and prosecution of the DUID (Driving Under the Influence) laws. Those who are detained and found guilty of DUID receive similar punishments as those with DUIs, depending on severity of the
circumstance.
Unless we are to establish a neo-prohibition of our era, alcohol will continue to be consumed on the regular. In order to properly deal with the issues that come about from the use of alcohol, there must be different preventative avenues taken. The fight against drunk driving has had a positive outcome and more advertising and knowledge against it is widespread in our society. However, drinking alcohol will never cease. And with that, drunken driving will continue to plague our nation. In the human services field, providing knowledge and resources to prevent drunk driving, along with addiction to alcohol and other substances is important. That is just one step in the right direction that someone in the human services field can take.
References:
History.com. (2009). Retrieved from http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/madd-founders-daughter-killed-by-drunk-driver
Alcohol Problems and Solutions. (1997-2015). Retrieved from http://www2.potsdam.edu/alcohol/drinkinganddriving.html#.VQ-iHPnF-LE
MADD 's Position Statements: Other Positions. (2015). Retrieved from http://www.madd.org/about-us/position-statements/madds-position-statements.html