The U.S. NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) is recommending that the blood alcohol level used to determine intoxication be lowered from its current level of 0.08% to 0.05%. What that would mean is that virtually no one could take even a single drink and then get behind the wheel without being at risk for a DWI charge. If people actually obeyed that limit, it would also mean that the rate of fatal DWI crashes might be reduced to almost nothing.
However, the Pearland DWI accident injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC note that DWI safety enforcement has been increasing along with state penalties for DWI offenses, yet the rate of DWI crashes has not declined. Texas still leads the nation by a wide margin in the rate of DWI accidents and fatalities. And TxDOT data shows that Harris County still leads Texas.
Every minute, someone dies in the United States because of a drunken driver. Approximately 33% of all fatal U.S. traffic accidents involve drunken drivers. That’s around 10,000 people who needlessly die each year in DWI crashes because people choose to drink and drive. Many tens of thousands of other people suffer severe injuries each year due to drunken drivers.
Is Lowering the Blood Alcohol Limit for DWI the Answer?
On average, a woman of less than 120 pounds will reach a 0.05% blood alcohol level after just one drink. And a man of less than 160 pounds will reach that limit in two drinks.
Our Pearland DWI accident injury attorneys point out that with the current blood alcohol limit of 0.08% and increasing penalties and enforcement for DWI, vast numbers of people still choose to drive drunk. And MADD (Mothers against Drunk Driving) has said that before their first arrest for DWI, many drunken drivers have driven while intoxicated more than 80 times. And drunken drivers arrested after DWI crashes often show a blood alcohol level two or three times the legal limit.
Lowering the threshold to 0.05% would not only take several years to be passed into law and even more years to be accepted, it might also frustrate drivers who currently avoid driving drunk under a 0.08% limit and lead them into DWI under a 0.05% limit.
We suspect that the behavioral changes caused by a lowering of the blood alcohol limit might go either way. But we mention that the NTSB states that over 100 nations have adopted the 0.05% standard, and that in Europe drunken driving deaths have decreased by more than 50% in 10 years. (Source: CBS 11 news, Dallas, 5/14/13)
Contact the Pearland DWI Accident Injury Attorneys at Denena Points, PC with Your Questions about Serious Injuries caused by a Drunken Driver
Texas law provides harsh penalties for drunken drivers, especially for repeat offenders. If a drunken driver has injured you or your loved ones and you need to learn what to do, feel free to contact the Pearland DWI accident injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC anytime. We’re available at 281-369-4363 or through our “Get Help Now” online contact form. We provide a FREE initial case evaluation consultation to discuss your case and answer your urgent questions. And you have no obligation to hire an attorney. Contact us today.