The Houston DWI injury lawyers at Denena Points, PC realize that it’s always awkward to intervene and try to steer someone from an inadvisable course of action. Whether it’s your friend’s budding relationship that you can clearly see is going to be a disaster, or an acquaintance who’s about to drive away from a holiday party totally snockered, people aren’t usually going to listen to sound advice anyway. They just don’t want to hear anything in conflict with their (possibly very blurred) view of reality. The tendency not to listen increases exponentially if the person is drunk. In fact, they might actually become belligerent. (On the up side, their coordination and aim might be severely impaired.)
It’s that time of year again. The holiday season. When many of us require a good dose of alcohol to be of good cheer in the face of unpleasant relatives, unreasonable gifting expectations, high credit card bills, and overly familiar colleagues at the annual office party. It’s really no wonder that many people drink themselves into insensibility throughout the season. But they must not drive impaired.
Our Houston DWI injury lawyers emphasize that the statistics are not in dispute. 1 in 3 fatal crashes in the U.S. each year are alcohol-related. 1 out of 6 young drivers regularly binge drink. So it’ a problem you’re likely going to face: the drunken friend, colleague, acquaintance, or relative who has consumes entirely too much alcohol and yet insists on driving home. So what do you do?
A national survey conducted by MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) found the following. Of the 73% of adults who said they had indeed seen a drunken person try to drive home:
19% chose to ignore the problem and its potentially deadly consequences and did nothing. We understand that, though we do not condone it.
46% chose to drive the person home themselves.
41% bravely took away the person’s keys.
25% called a taxicab.
2% called law enforcement and let them handle it.
13% did something else.
(Our Houston DWI injury lawyers notice that the percentages here add up to well above 100%. MADD did not clearly explain that. It’s possible, we suppose, that a large percentage of the 41% who tock away the keys became part of the 46% who drove the drunken partier home. Or became the 2% who called law enforcement after the person became belligerent after their keys were snatched away.)
During the holiday season, its important to note that many organizations and venues offer free cab rides home. It’s also often possible to find a designated driver. Quite a few venues serve free non-alcoholic drinks to designated drivers. The key is to plan ahead, while you’re still sober.
The Houston DWI injury lawyers at Denena Points, PC mention that it’s not just your life and safety you risk by driving drunk. It’s also your freedom. In Texas, holiday weekends have become “no refusal” weekends, where law enforcement agencies work with judges and medical personnel on stepped-up safety enforcement. Expedited procedures for obtaining forced blood draws are in place, so your refusal to submit to a breath test or blood draw will get you nowhere.
Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day represents the deadliest time of the year for fatal DWI crashes. People who might not ordinarily drive drunk are over-imbibing at office parties and all sorts of holiday events. Section 724.012 of the Texas Transportation Code, “Taking of Specimen,” describes what you’re likely to face if you’re pulled over after enjoying a holiday party just a bit too much. Our Houston DWI injury lawyers can’t overemphasize this: plan ahead if you’ll be drinking. It’s your own life, limb, and freedom you might preserve by just a little planning. Click the link to read about a drunken driving crash that reveals what could happen if you drive drunk.