22 March 2011

Recidivist drink drivers

22 March 2011 | By johnboy

More than a third of people caught drink driving in the past week were repeat offenders; with thirty one people caught in total. Twelve people were caught on Friday (March 18) alone.

A 28-year-old man recorded 0.297, the highest recording for the week. The man is restricted to a 0.00 limit.

A 25-year-old man, on a 0.05 licence, recorded the next highest reading with 0.231; while a 22-year-old female 0.05 licence holder recorded 0.200.

With the ACT road toll at four, Superintendent Mark Colbran is urging the community to support the police message that drinking and driving is unacceptable.

“The fact that we continue to catch repeat offenders tells us those who think it’s ok to drink and drive are just not getting the message.

“I urge anyone who knows someone who drinks and drive to make a stand. Tell them that their actions are unacceptable. Notify the police. We will not tolerate the lives of our friends and family being put in danger,” he said.

[Courtesy ACT Policing]

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fragge12:12 pm 24 Mar 11

screaming banshee said :

As far as I am concerned, drink drivers can all f*** off and die. I would be very content with a death penalty for the offence.

Slightly harsh, don’t you think? First of all, when somebody drives drunk, they have made that decision whilst already under the influence of alcohol (which has been shown repeatedly to reduce ones ability to make responsible decisions). Secondly, the percentage of fatal crashes which involve drivers over-the-limit is anywhere from 12.8% (2001 study in the U.S) to 32% (2006 study in Australia), and the percentage (again to quote from American sources here) of people injured in crashes involving drink-driving (versus those involved in crashes where no alcohol is consumed) is between 3.22% and 7%.

Finally, it has been proven that talking on a mobile phone impairs ones ability to drive more so than being under the influence of alcohol, yet I don’t see you up in arms demanding the death penalty for somebody guilty of chatting to their wife about dinner on their way home from work. Maybe you should re-think your apparent propensity for being an alarmist, ignorant arm-chair critic. You want to make a difference, how about instead of offering to kill other human beings for committing benign crimes, you get out and volunteer to be a counsellor to struggling alcoholics and actually help somebody get their life back.

shadow boxer11:50 am 24 Mar 11

Special G said :

Healthy liver metabolises about 0.025/hour regardless of body weight, sex or hair colour.

Drinks like vodka/red bulls get people in trouble as the large amounts of caffeine mask the alcohol effects to a degree.

Really ? then why is the advice on what you can drink different for women and men

screaming banshee10:37 am 24 Mar 11

As far as I am concerned, drink drivers can all f*** off and die. I would be very content with a death penalty for the offence.

Me no fry10:29 am 24 Mar 11

screaming banshee said :

Me no fry said :

It probably isn’t worth taking.

You’ve missed the point me no fry, we don’t want their liver…that goes in the trash. Lets see them down a carton short a liver.

Actually, no I didn’t. I understood quite well what you meant. You really are a banshee, aren’t you?

Special G8:25 am 24 Mar 11

Healthy liver metabolises about 0.025/hour regardless of body weight, sex or hair colour.

Drinks like vodka/red bulls get people in trouble as the large amounts of caffeine mask the alcohol effects to a degree.

LSWCHP11:15 pm 23 Mar 11

farnarkler said :

In this discussion nothing of the offender’s friends have been mentioned. Surely the offender isn’t sitting drinking alone and then decides to drive.

What sort of person lets a friend who’s obviously had more than a few get behind the wheel?

Ahhh…I suspect it would be the sort of drunken arsehat friend who has also had several skinfulls with their mate at the club/pub, and has climbed into their car equally pissed and driven off in the other direction because they know they’re drunk but don’t give a shit about the law or the potentially fatal consequences of their actions.

Me and members of my family and our friends have suffered because of drunk drivers. I hate the bastards with a passion.

screaming banshee11:06 pm 23 Mar 11

Me no fry said :

It probably isn’t worth taking.

You’ve missed the point me no fry, we don’t want their liver…that goes in the trash. Lets see them down a carton short a liver.

farnarkler8:40 pm 23 Mar 11

In this discussion nothing of the offender’s friends have been mentioned. Surely the offender isn’t sitting drinking alone and then decides to drive.

What sort of person lets a friend who’s obviously had more than a few get behind the wheel?

eily8:30 pm 23 Mar 11

Jethro said :

eily said :

And how many were repectable people, caught the next morning over (just) the limit after doing the right thing the night before and not driving but thought themselves right to drive after a good nights sleep?

A respectable person would realise that a couple hours sleep doesn’t sober you up. Time does. I don’t drive the next day if I had a really big one the night before.

I’m not talking about the ones who had a bender the night before, just the mum and dad drinkers who only have a couple. But though age/weight/sex etc don’t clear the alcohol from their systems as fast, as in the past,we have been told we do.

How many still believe that two/three in an hour will put you over the limit and one an hour will keep you there. If your one of the unlucky ones, just one will put you over the limit.

And were do they tell us how long it could take to clear our systems.

Some people may take only a couple of hours, some over twelve. There’s a reason pilots can’t have a drink 24 hours before they take to the air.

Someone I know went to a drug/alcohol information course and the number of caught drivers who fell into that category of being over in the morning, and not after a heavy night, were in the majority. Including, he was told, police, lawyers and others who you think would know better.

If they don’t know how much they can drink and how long it takes to leave their systems, what hope do the rest of us have.

And before you go off again; I don’t condone the drivers who knowingly drink drive. Those ones need the book thrown at them. Hanged, drawn and quartered, and whatevers left being made to go out with the ambos and seeing the consequences of their stupidity/idiocy. That might get the point across.

But until we change our ideas about drinking, I very much doubt it.

OpenYourMind5:41 pm 23 Mar 11

Shadow Boxer I think you are still missing the point. The repeat offender example you use has already taken the decision to put at risk the wife & kids transport and also other people’s lives. The punishment of taking the car is to protect everyone else.

Sure, John Laws (if he was a repeat offender) may not be harmed by losing a car in the same way he probably wouldn’t feel a $1500 fine.