Summary: The Consequences Of Drinking And Driving

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Drinking and driving in the United States has become a serious problem that needs to be stopped before it gets out of hand. Driving any sort of vehicle requires for one’s full attention, when a person is under the influence their senses do not work at their full potential causing for horrific accidents to happen. Alcohol is a depressant that affect an individual’s vision, coordination, reaction time, multitasking ability, judgement, and decision making, which is all necessary for the safety of a driver and those who surround him/her. The consequences for drinking and driving are big for both the driver and anyone who shares the road with him/her. Drunk driving is simply not a mistake, it is a choice; therefore, if a person is caught drinking …show more content…
On April 4, 2016, a Long Island couple was killed due to a drunk driver who struck their car. The couple was on their way home from having dinner with their kids and grandchildren when a young man, 23-years-old, ran a red light while speeding and hit the couple’s truck. While the couple’s family is grieving from their loss, the drunk driver is currently hospitalized, has been arrested, and charged with driving while intoxicated(DUI). (The New York Post, 2016). On May 7, 2005 a young man, 20-years-old, was involved in a car accident that took his life away. As he came down from his University for mother’s day weekend, he attended a party where his old friends would be at, he got in a car with a drunk driver and minutes later the car was resting upside down against a large tree, while the young man died the passenger left the scene with a few scratches and was arrested for DUI (Mothers Against Drunk Driving [MADD], 2016). Just like these two cases, there have been many more incidents where the victim’s life is taken away, while the person who is driving under the influence gets to walk away alive. There is no justification for a family to have to go through that pain and suffering simply because someone decided to drive while …show more content…
Alcohol affects the frontal hemisphere of a person’s brain, also known as the frontal lobe, the reason this is important is because the frontal lobe is responsible for all higher thought process, such as decision making skills, judgement, and reaction time which are all crucial skills a driver must have, (Berman et al., n.d.). When a person is drunk they tend to believe that they are actually less drunk than what they are which gives them the confidence to get in a vehicle and drive. If someone is caught drinking and driving the consequences may vary depending on the level of blood alcohol content(BAC). According to the Florida Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles Department (FLHSMV) if a person gets caught driving with a BAC level of 0.08% or higher the person will be fined between $500 to a $1000 if there are no minors in the car, with a minor in the car with them the fine will go up to $1000 - $4000. On the first offense they will be required to do 50 hours of community service or an additional fine of $10 for each hour of community service required. With a BAC of 0.15% or higher the person will be imprisoned for no more than nine months on their first

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