 Alcohol is a major factor in traffic accidents. According to U.S Department of Transportation,
National Highway Traffic Safety Admininstration (NHTSA) projections, there is an alcohol-related traffic fatality every 29
minutes.
Alcohol-related crashes are defined as those where someone involved, either a driver or a pedestrian or
another nonoccupant, had a traceable amount of alcohol in his or her blood. According to NHTSA projections, 17,941 people
died in alcohol-related crashes in 2006, the highest level since 1992 and up 2.4 percent from 17,525 in 2005. Alcohol was
involved in 41 percent of all crash fatalities in 2006.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that over
1.4 million drivers were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or narcotics in 2004 (latest data available).
The arrest rate works out to one arrest for every 139 licensed drivers in the United States.
The definition of
drunk driving is consistent throughout the United States. Every state and the District of Columbia defines impairment as driving
with a BAC (blood alcohol content) at or above 0.08. In addition, they all have zero tolerance laws prohibiting drivers under
the age of 21 from drinking and driving. Generally the BAC in these cases is 0.02.
Antidrunk driving campaigns
especially target drivers under the age of 21, repeat offenders and 21 to 34 year olds, the age group that is responsible
for more alcohol-related fatal crashes than any other. Young drivers are those least responsive to arguments against drunk
driving, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
To make sellers and servers of liquor
more careful about to whom and how they serve drinks, 43 states and the District of Columbia hold liquor servers legally liable
for the damage and injuries a drunk driver causes.
Repeat Offenders:
Over half of drivers arrested for drunk driving in the nation are repeat offenders, according to a 2003 AAA Foundation for
Traffic Safety study. Two thirds of drivers with suspended licenses still drive. To combat the problem, the foundation recommended
laws that allow the impounding of vehicles, the removal of license plates on arrest, the mandating of ignition interlocks,
the use of special plates to identify repeat offenders and the use of checkpoints to verify licenses. The foundation also
recommended prohibiting vehicle registration by drivers without valid licenses. Forty-six states have passed ignition interlock
laws, according to MADD. Interlocks are devices that measure a driver's blood alcohol and prevent a car from starting
if alcohol is detected.
Liability Issues: Commercial servers: Forty-three states and the District
of Columbia have laws on the books or case law (law that comes about through a court ruling rather than an act of the legislature)
that hold commercial servers of alcohol liable for the harm caused by their intoxicated patrons. Some of the laws have limitations.
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