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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 30, 1997)
October "hursday • October 30, 1997 Lifestyles now When to Say When W !§| jgs nm ^ & Ip . - ip {fjS ^ WlJ SlJ Sri j^jd €m Think When You Drink ric? of Reel TASTES GREAT LESS FILL ill othing Beats a ■ ' — irtf || 'llr M l| || ^ || Jr II P ^ 11 || i |p: Ilis ....igiL. ADD's Court Monitoring Program ensures judges do not issue nient sentences to Bryan-College Station drunken drivers M By Travis Irby Staff writer Keople drink, people drive, people die. It is a scary reality, and Mothers Against Drunk Dri- ■ ving (MADE)) is trying to curb the drunken dri- irig problem. ■plADD members are volunteering as court monitors or Administrative Licensed Revocation (ALR) hearings. he hearings are not criminal proceedings, but they etermine whether someone’s license can be revoked ifter being charged with Driving While Intoxicated pfci) and Driving Under the Influence (DUI). wfiR/IADD has monitors attend ALR hearings to make ■lure drunken drivers’ licenses are taken away. I) mngela Davis of MADD said the monitors are im- boltantto the proceedings. is If a person didn’t drink or drive, then they have -io|hing to worry about,” Davis said. “If they did dilnk and drive), we are going to make sure they lose hei i' license.” kirk Brown, A&M professor of soil science and blinder of Brazos Valley MADD, said ALR hearings nay be one of the most effective tools in fighting dri- under the influence of alcohol. ■Tit’s as effective as the judges who administer it,” 3r|wn said. “If they take the person’s license away, ^han there is less chance that person will drink and T^e again.” fpRrown said most drunken drivers are repeat of- jfenders, and they drink and drive until caught and p >ohietimes even afterwards, f “It used to be throughout the ‘70s and most of the ’ 80b, someone could get caught, get in a wreck or kill iiilmieone. and they wouldn’t even lose their license,” said. )avis said Texas leads the nation in drunken dri ving fatalities. “Texas has very lax laws when it comes to drunk dri ving, and as a consequence, we lead the nation in drinking and driving fatalities,” Davis said. Brown said things are not as bad as they used to be, but their is room for improvement. “When they first started the ALR hearings, it was not as effective as it could be,” Brown said. “It depended on who the judge was among other things. “Without any one to monitor the situation, we had no way to make sure people who deserved to have their license taken did.” Laura Mooney, MADD board president, said the slack given to persons who drive while intoxicated is one reason MADD started the program. “The worst that can occur at these hearings is the license is taken away,” Mooney said. “Even then, it isn’t physically taken away, it is logged onto a com puter, and the only way police know about it is if they stop the driver.” Mooney pointed out most of the time drunken dri vers are not caught. “Studies show only 1 in 40 to as low as 1 in 200 drunken drivers are caught,” Mooney said. “It is very important to punish the ones we do catch.” Davis said the MADD court monitoring pro gram helps insure offenders face at least one form of punishment. “It isn’t a criminal proceeding, but if their li cense is taken away, it will take them off the streets and force them to think about what they’ve done,” Davis said. Mooney said since the program was started in 1996, MADD’s courtroom presence has been effective. “It makes a difference to have someone there,” Mooney said. Davis said while the court monitor program is ef- DAVE HOUSE/The Battalion Angela Davis, a member of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), stands inside the Bryan Municipal Building. fective, it is hard to find people to do it. “We need people to get up every Wednesday morn ing to make sure things are going well,” Davis said. “The desire is there, but with jobs and such it is hard to make the hearings.” Brown said if MADD could get enough people to at tend the hearings, its effectiveness would be enhanced. “If the judges and juries know we’re there and watching, they will respond in kind,” Brown said. Brown said people do not necessarily have to have faced a tragedy to get involved. “No one I knew had been killed by a drunk driver, and I wanted it to stay that way,” Brown said. “That is why I helped bring MADD to the Brazos Valley.” ew state laws increase MIP, DUI and DWI ishments to include jail time and heavier fines By Brandi Ballard Staff writer t could quite possibly be labeled as a college student’s worst nightmare. It can min a party, wipe out a checking account and call for a trip to court. Minor in Possessions IPs) are a reality for stu nts who drink and are under te age of 21, and as of Sept. 1, LGRAMIfnws for MIP, Drinking While itoxicated (DWI) and Driving c fnder the Influence (DUI) are UrCno tore stringent. ’CT/nM Lieutenant Mike Mathews O/lUlvaid a MIP is considered a i/pnc -lass C misdemeanor, punish- 'VCnO ble up to $500. “Upon conviction, you must attend an alcohol-aware- tess class,” Mathews said. “There is a community service of 1 ^ Q 10 ^ ess th 311 eight days, not more than 12 days, and your li- J :ense could be suspended.” For a first-time offender, a driver’s license could be sus- )N, P.i| >N, TEW pk5\ PICK UP YOUR COPY TODAY. Opinion E# loto Editor Radio Editor Veb Editor b Editor ffice I pended up to 60 days. For a repeat offender, it goes up to 180 days. DWIs are considered a Class B misdemeanor, Mathews said. The maximum fine for a DWI is $2,000 and 180 days in jail. There is a minimum term of confinement for 72 hours. Mathews said if it is proven there was an open container of alcohol in the car, the mini mum terms of confinement goes up to 6 days and the dri ver’s license can be suspended for up to 120 days. Mathews said DUIs are sim ilar to DWIs, except DUIs are only given to those who are un der the age of 21. “The minor must have a de tectable amount of alcohol on their breath or in their sys tem,” Mathews said. A DUI is also classified as a Class C misdemeanor and pun ishable up to $500. Offenders must attend an alcohol awareness course, and there is a provision to suspend the driver’s license. Please see MIP on Page 5. Halfway There dramatizes the dangers of alcohol abuse in the lives of five teenagers By Marium Mohiuddin Staff writer L ast week a local news anchor appeared on a national talk show to discuss his rise and fall due to alcoholism. The man retold his account of drinking before, during and after the broadcast — how he had to have alcohol to make it through the day. To look at the man he seemed normal. But to hear the destruction of his life was devastating. He had gone from news anchor to a maintenance worker at a rehabilitation center. Many people have come forth to reveal to the world the damaging effects of alcohol on their lives in the hope it may reach one person and convince them to change. However these efforts may not be hitting the group where alcohol is a growing problem — the youth of America. Sunna Rasch, executive director of Periwinkle National Theatre for Young Audiences, realized this problem and created Halfway There, a play about five teenagers struggling to regain their lives after drug abuse. “I went to treatment centers to help the youth ease their pain through poems,” Rasch said. “I had planned to go for a couple of weeks, but I went for a year. Some time later, our spon sors wanted to create a production dealing with alcohol abuse among teenagers. I began work, and I did not realize that I had already accu mulated the research.” Rasch said this play is about the lives of the youth in the rehabilitation center, their hopes and their will to change. “I had fallen in love with their struggle,” Rasch said. “They were sucked into the peer pressure of not belonging and trying to fit in. So alcohol be came tempting and seductive.” Rasch said the set and the costumes were kept simple so the attractiveness and the dan ger of drug abuse would pour through. The set is reflective and suggestive, allowing the audi ence to magnify the play with their own per sonal experiences. Please see Halfway on Page 4. Student PubMr; ■ 45-3313; Fat 84F> us, local, and nation^ and office lKwa(tf : Die Battalion.^ call 845-2611. md Monday tlra$ f - jep 1997-98 Texas A&M Campus Directory NOW AVAILABLE S TUDENTS: If you ordered a 1997-98 Campus Directory, stop by room 015 (basement) of the Reed McDonald Building from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday to pick up your copy. (Please bring Student ID.) If you did not order a Campus Directory as a fee option when you registered for Fall ’97 classes, you may purchase a copy for $3 plus tax in room 015 Reed McDonald (by cash, check or credit card). D EPARTMENTS: You may charge and pick up Campus Directories at 015 Reed McDonald. Cost is $3 per copy. (Please bring a work request with your part number, FAMIS account number, account name, billing address, contact person and phone number where the directories should be billed.) 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