DWI Blogs

Why Do Teens Drink?
Experimentation with alcohol during the teen years is common. Some reasons that teens use alcohol and other drugs are:
curiosity
to feel good, reduce stress, and relax
to fit in
to feel older
From a very young age, kids see advertising messages showing beautiful people enjoying life — and alcohol. And because many parents and other adults use alcohol socially — having beer or wine with dinner, for example — alcohol seems harmless to many teens.

Alcohol is a depressant, which means it slows the function of the central nervous system. Alcohol actually blocks some of the messages trying to get to the brain. This alters a person's perceptions, emotions, movement, vision, and hearing.
In very small amounts, alcohol can help a person feel more relaxed or less anxious. More alcohol causes greater changes in the brain, resulting in intoxication. People who have overused alcohol may stagger, lose their coordination, and slur their speech. They will probably be confused and disoriented. Depending on the person, intoxication can make someone very friendly and talkative or very aggressive and angry. Reaction times are slowed dramatically — which is why people are told not to drink and drive. People who are intoxicated may think they're moving properly when they're not. They may act totally out of character.
When large amounts of alcohol are consumed in a short period of time, alcohol poisoning can result. Alcohol poisoning is exactly what it sounds like — the body has become poisoned by large amounts of alcohol. Violent vomiting is usually the first symptom of alcohol poisoning. Extreme sleepiness, unconsciousness, difficulty breathing, dangerously low blood sugar, seizures, and even death may result.

Alcohol is created when grains, fruits, or vegetables are fermented. Fermentation is a process that uses yeast or bacteria to change the sugars in the food into alcohol. Fermentation is used to produce many necessary items — everything from cheese to medications. Alcohol has different forms and can be used as a cleaner, an antiseptic, or a sedative.
So if alcohol is a natural product, why do teens need to be concerned about drinking it? When people drink alcohol, it's absorbed into their bloodstream. From there, it affects the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord), which controls virtually all body functions. Because experts now know that the human brain is still developing during our teens, scientists are researching the effects drinking alcohol can have on the teen brain.

How close does death or injury have to come to you or your family at the hands of a drunk driver, before you will do something active, not passive? Get involved now! THE LIFE YOU SAVE COULD BE YOUR OWN OR THAT OF A LOVED ONE.
Our governments, federal, state and local have declared WAR on drunken driving, yet the problem remains.
We have gotten MADD, SADD, BADD and more, and still the madness continues.
Can anything be done?
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DUI Convictions and Insurance
Every state has different laws regarding DUI convictions and every insurance company has different policies to try to help you dig yourself out of conviction-related incidents.
If you get a DUI (Driving Under the Influence) conviction, your insurance rate will undoubtedly go up. Maybe the premiums will even double! This is the result of the Zero-Tolerance laws that went into effect in 1995. The only states that do not have these laws are South Carolina and Massachusetts, but they are considering them.
Depending upon your past driving record and the insurance company that you use, you may not have a choice about what happens to your insurance coverage. Some policies are written as conservative risk insurance that will automatically cancel you once you have been convicted and they find out about it.
Some insurance companies will cancel your current automobile coverage policy once you have been convicted, and will then offer you SR-22 insurance, which is much higher; but it’s about all you can get under this circumstance.
It must be maintained for 3 years and then, if you have no more convictions, you may resume "normal" insurance. Some companies do not even offer SR-22 insurance, so they will simply cancel you and you must find a completely different company that is willing to work with you.
SR-22 insurance means that your insurance company must notify the state where your license is issued if you have any lapses in insurance coverage. This notice can lead to total revocation of your license until you obtain coverage again.
Still other companies are not allowed to cancel you mid-term even with a conviction due to local laws. Find out what your state does and discuss this issue with your insurance company before it happens to you so that you can be prepared for all possibilities.
In most states, your insuring company will check for DUI convictions every three years as part of their normal operating procedure. Even if they miss the conviction initially, they have up to three years to cancel and/or raise your premiums! Even if no traffic accident occurs, finding new insurance can be the biggest cost you face when convicted of drunk driving.
Another consequence of driving drunk and DUI conviction: court costs

More and more states are passing Zero Tolerance laws when it comes to dealing with DUIs, ( Driving Under the Influence ) and the penalties are severe. It is becoming outdated to have a lawyer plead your case and get a reduced sentence.
Many states are now mandating laws that judges must adhere to and impose sentences, even for first offenders that include jail time and lengthy suspension of licenses. Drunk driving consequences are now extremely harsh and judges are getting ever stricter in handing out fines and penalties.
In addition to the fines and penalties imposed by judges, there are other consequences drivers must consider before getting behind the wheel after drinking:
jail time
court costs
loss of job/loss of income
attorneys fees
increased insurance rates
car impound and towing fees
loss of driving privileges
cost of drivers education classes
cost and inconvenience of ignition interlock device installed on car
community service time
and the worst consequence of drunk driving is injuring or killing someone
In the last twenty-five years, there have been thousands of new laws passed dealing with drivers operating vehicles under the influence. Binge drinking by underage drivers account for a surprising portion of alcohol related accidents.
All states now have 21 as the legal drinking age and two-thirds of the states have enacted laws allowing arresting officers to seize driver’s licenses when the driver fails or refuses to take a Breathalyzer test. Some states have passed Habitual Violator laws. Drunk driving consequences can include felony charges and extended jail or even prison time.
Excessive drinking that can raise the BAC (Blood Level Concentrate) to .08 and above is becoming one of the nation’s greatest problems. A staggering eighteen million Americans fall into the category of being either an alcoholic or an alcohol abuser.
Possibly one of the worse side effects to alcohol abuse is the loss of memory and impairment of reasoning. Once a drinker has reached a level of approximately .03, they begin to lose the ability to judge if they are capable of safe driving. New technology may be an answer to this quandary and help lessen the consequences of drunk driving.
Breathalyzers, both personal sizes small enough to fit in a purse or pants pocket and the larger coin operated vending machine models are in demand. Responsible drinkers do not want to put themselves or others in danger. Breathalyzers are one way to curb irresponsible drivers from getting behind the wheel of a vehicle.
Owners of bars and restaurants are installing the vending machines not only to help prevent alcohol related accidents but to help protect their establishments from expensive lawsuits.
An individual who has had a few too many drinks now has the opportunity to measure their BAC, and make a rational decision on their ability to drive. More likely, a friend or designated non-drinker may be the one to make the judgment call.
In any event, breathalyzers can be a major factor in saving lives. Ask your neighborhood barkeep when they will be getting a coin operated breathalyzer and don’t be surprised if there is already one installed. It just makes good sense with the consequences of driving drunk likely to become ever more severe.

The acronym "DWI" can mean two things: Driving While Impaired (by medications or other substances), or Driving While Intoxicated (this refers to alcohol). Both are illegal. DWI is a serious and sometimes expensive charge.
In some states, in addition to fees related to the DWI charge, an offender must pay for treatment programs. An offender must also pay to have their license reinstated at the end of the suspension.
If you are arrested for DWI, your license will immediately be suspended. After a period that differs in each state, an offender may be able to regain limited driving privileges, such as the ability to drive between certain hours, to travel to and from work.
As part of the process to reinstate driving privileges, some states require that the driver install an ignition interlocking system. This system analyzes the driver's breath and will not start if alcohol is detected.
All 50 states and the District of Columbia have laws which make driving with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .08 or higher illegal. There is no legal limit for people suspected of driving while impaired by medications or other substances. In this case, the factors considered are whether the substance has affected a person's reaction time and driving ability, among others.
Most over-the-counter medications can make you drowsy and impair your ability to function as an alert driver. Many states have an implied consent law, which means that when you drive, you consent to take a breath test or other field sobriety test, and if you refuse (a common tactic), your license may be suspended or face other mandatory penalties.
Painful DWI Facts
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2004, over 16,000 people were killed in alcohol related crashes in the United States . An alcohol related crash occurs approximately every two minutes in the US . Every thirty minutes someone dies from a drunk driving incident.
Most states in the US have been creating laws that are increasingly strict to combat the drunk driving problem. In Oregon for example, a first time DWI conviction carries a mandatory suspension of driving privileges for one year.
A second conviction carries a three-year suspension if the second offense occurred within five years of a previous conviction. In some states, a driver under the age of 18 convicted of DWI will lose their driving privileges until they are 18 or eligible for reinstatement, whichever comes later.

There are tremendous pressures to "do something." In 1997, according to the United States Department of Transportation, 38.6% of all traffic deaths were alcohol-related -- a total of 16,189 alcohol-related traffic deaths. (Fifteen years earlier, in 1982, alcohol-related deaths represented 57.3% of that year's 43,945 total traffic fatalities.)In addition, a study done by the National Highway Safety Administration reported that the risk of a driver with a 0.10% blood alcohol content (BAC) being in fatal accident is many times greater than a driver with a 0.08% BAC.Despite the fact that drivers are legally drunk at 0.08%, the head of the Montana State Police stated that the average driver arrested for a DUI in Montana has a 0.17% BAC. Thus most of those arrested for a DUI or DWI are way over the line.