American legislatures have constantly added to sentence lengths for a host of crimes in the last 25 years. In many states, this has been combined with a decrease in the power of the parole board due to determinate sentencing. The resulting increase in length of stay has been a key driver of the prison population boom.
In theoretical terms, the excessive focus on the severity of punishment has led farther and farther away from the realization that the Enlightenment thinker Cesare Beccaria reached way back in 1764. Namely, that if the goal is deterring crime, the certainty of punishment is far more important than the severity.
A particular case in point is drunk driving laws. Numerous states have adopted felony sentences for three or more convictions for drunken driving. In terms of actually preventing drunk driving, however, it would probably be more effective to put more cops on the road on a regular basis.
Why would this help? As things stand now, most offenders drive drunk multiple times before they are finally pulled over and charged. But if there were a significantly higher chance of being caught, potential drunk driving offenders would be more inclined to avoid committing the offense altogether.
This, at least, is what Beccaria’s certainty principle would suggest. To be sure, it would cost considerable sums of money to put more DWI checkpoints in place and engage in other crime prevention efforts. But considering how expensive it is to incarcerate someone, Beccaria’s insight could reallocate resources toward a more efficient overall strategy for dealing with drunk driving.
It would also be more just. With more consistent enforcement of the law, arrests would seem more consistent, and therefore more fair.
Showing posts with label drunken driving. Show all posts
Showing posts with label drunken driving. Show all posts
Friday, September 28, 2012
Saturday, May 19, 2012
Celebrity's Peculiar Platform
“Celebrity is as celebrity does,” says Ken Branagh’s Gildreoy Lockhart in the film version of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets.
Well, maybe so. The statement is so tautologically nonsensical its meaning, if any, remains obscure.
Yet it does point to our cultural preoccupation with fleeting fame, narcissistic navel-gazing, and tabloid-driven news.
A case in point: The Detroit News reported last week on the drunken driving sentencing hearing for former Miss USA Rima Fakih. The 26-year-old Michigan native was caught last December with a half-empty champagne bottle in her car as she wove in and out of traffic. Her blood-alcohol content was over twice the legal limit.
Fakih was worried she might have to serve jail time. But a judge in Detroit sentenced her to six months of probation and 20 hours of community service. She must also pay a $300 fine and $300 in court costs, as well as other fees.
Fakih’s community service will include speaking to students about the dangers of drunken driving. Perhaps her celebrity status as the first Arab-American to become Miss USA really will gain a wide audience for her cautionary message about drinking and driving.
Indeed, for Fakih, it seems like a win-win. She not only avoids jail; she also gets to keep her flickering flame of fame alive. At least until she makes her scheduled appearance on a celebrity-dating reality-TV show later this year.
Well, maybe so. The statement is so tautologically nonsensical its meaning, if any, remains obscure.
Yet it does point to our cultural preoccupation with fleeting fame, narcissistic navel-gazing, and tabloid-driven news.
A case in point: The Detroit News reported last week on the drunken driving sentencing hearing for former Miss USA Rima Fakih. The 26-year-old Michigan native was caught last December with a half-empty champagne bottle in her car as she wove in and out of traffic. Her blood-alcohol content was over twice the legal limit.
Fakih was worried she might have to serve jail time. But a judge in Detroit sentenced her to six months of probation and 20 hours of community service. She must also pay a $300 fine and $300 in court costs, as well as other fees.
Fakih’s community service will include speaking to students about the dangers of drunken driving. Perhaps her celebrity status as the first Arab-American to become Miss USA really will gain a wide audience for her cautionary message about drinking and driving.
Indeed, for Fakih, it seems like a win-win. She not only avoids jail; she also gets to keep her flickering flame of fame alive. At least until she makes her scheduled appearance on a celebrity-dating reality-TV show later this year.
Friday, December 31, 2010
DWI in MN: 1 in 7 Drivers
The holidays are a notoriously grim time on America's roads. Too many people drink too much and then drive without giving proper thought to the logistics of getting home safely.
Law enforcement agencies and safety advocates such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving try their best to respond to the challenge. Here in Minnesota, MADD is teaming up with the Department of Public Safety's Office of Traffic Safety and the State Patrol as part of a national effort called Tie One on for Safety. Members of the public are encouraged to tie red ribbons to their vehicles to signify a commitment to safe, sober, buckled-up driving.
The statistics cited in the Star Tribune news item announcing the annual campaign speak of a culture with a drinking problem. In Minnesota alone, there were 3,931 alcohol-related crashes last year. These crashes killed 141 people and injured 2,592.
Of course, the problem isn't only alcohol; it also includes other drugs. The I in DWI stands, after all, for impaired, and drivers can be impaired by drugs as well as alcohol. Sometimes, sadly, they are impaired by both.
It's pretty scary to consider how many impaired drivers are out on the roads - not just at the holidays, but throughout the year. One in seven Minnesota drivers has a DWI conviction.
1 in 7!
Law enforcement agencies and safety advocates such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving try their best to respond to the challenge. Here in Minnesota, MADD is teaming up with the Department of Public Safety's Office of Traffic Safety and the State Patrol as part of a national effort called Tie One on for Safety. Members of the public are encouraged to tie red ribbons to their vehicles to signify a commitment to safe, sober, buckled-up driving.
The statistics cited in the Star Tribune news item announcing the annual campaign speak of a culture with a drinking problem. In Minnesota alone, there were 3,931 alcohol-related crashes last year. These crashes killed 141 people and injured 2,592.
Of course, the problem isn't only alcohol; it also includes other drugs. The I in DWI stands, after all, for impaired, and drivers can be impaired by drugs as well as alcohol. Sometimes, sadly, they are impaired by both.
It's pretty scary to consider how many impaired drivers are out on the roads - not just at the holidays, but throughout the year. One in seven Minnesota drivers has a DWI conviction.
1 in 7!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
A Death in the Family, on the World Cup's Eve
On her way home from a celebratory concert to kickoff the 2010 World Cup, Nelson Mandela's 13-year-old daughter, Zenani, was killed by a drunken driver in a one-car accident, according to press reports. The driver probably faces vehicular homicide charges.
To mourn Zenani's loss, Nelson Mandela did not attend the opening ceremonies.
He is no stranger to family tragedy. In 1969, as he began to serve a life sentence for subversion, Mandela received a telegram informing him that his eldest son had died in a car crash. Prison authorities did not allow Mandela to attend the funeral.
Yet gaining his release and becoming the first president of post-apartheid South Africa did not insulate him from personal pain, either. In 2005, he announced that his last surviving son had died of AIDS-related medical problems.
Life gives no free pass, even for one of the most lauded citizens of the world.
To mourn Zenani's loss, Nelson Mandela did not attend the opening ceremonies.
He is no stranger to family tragedy. In 1969, as he began to serve a life sentence for subversion, Mandela received a telegram informing him that his eldest son had died in a car crash. Prison authorities did not allow Mandela to attend the funeral.
Yet gaining his release and becoming the first president of post-apartheid South Africa did not insulate him from personal pain, either. In 2005, he announced that his last surviving son had died of AIDS-related medical problems.
Life gives no free pass, even for one of the most lauded citizens of the world.
Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Oneself as Another, Framed Through a Mug Shot
The young basketball star said all the right things, the day after his drunken driving arrest.
Timberwolves' power forward Al Jefferson, known an Big Al, was booked into jail in the early morning hours of March 1 on a charge of fourth-degree driving while impaired. He had made the choice to drink and then drive, only to be stopped by an officer of the state patrol on I-394 just outside downtown Minneapolis. A breath test administered at the scene showed his blood-alcohol content to be over the legal limit of .08.
Jefferson was out on bail within an hour, but his mug shot soon appeared on TV. The T-Wolves responded quickly by suspending Jefferson for two games, costing him $293,000 in lost salary.
The next day, Jefferson seemed genuinely remorseful. He apologized to his teammates, team management, fans, and his family (particularly the grandmother who raised him) for making a "stupid choice." He'd seriously considered calling someone to drive him home to Golden Valley, but then got in his car anyway.
In a lengthy interview with the Star Tribune, Jefferson acknowledged that the death of Timberwolves' player Malik Sealy at the hands of a drunk driver in May 2000 makes Jefferson's decision to drink and drive all the more disappointing.
"That's what really makes me feel bad. He was an innocent guy going home and a drunk driver hit him. I couldn't live with myself if that would have happened, if I would have done something to someone like that."
So Big Al seems to get it. Driving while impaired, he could have ended up like the man who killed Sealy. A mug shot is not a pretty picture, but at least Al Jefferson is seeing clearly through its frame.
Timberwolves' power forward Al Jefferson, known an Big Al, was booked into jail in the early morning hours of March 1 on a charge of fourth-degree driving while impaired. He had made the choice to drink and then drive, only to be stopped by an officer of the state patrol on I-394 just outside downtown Minneapolis. A breath test administered at the scene showed his blood-alcohol content to be over the legal limit of .08.
Jefferson was out on bail within an hour, but his mug shot soon appeared on TV. The T-Wolves responded quickly by suspending Jefferson for two games, costing him $293,000 in lost salary.
The next day, Jefferson seemed genuinely remorseful. He apologized to his teammates, team management, fans, and his family (particularly the grandmother who raised him) for making a "stupid choice." He'd seriously considered calling someone to drive him home to Golden Valley, but then got in his car anyway.
In a lengthy interview with the Star Tribune, Jefferson acknowledged that the death of Timberwolves' player Malik Sealy at the hands of a drunk driver in May 2000 makes Jefferson's decision to drink and drive all the more disappointing.
"That's what really makes me feel bad. He was an innocent guy going home and a drunk driver hit him. I couldn't live with myself if that would have happened, if I would have done something to someone like that."
So Big Al seems to get it. Driving while impaired, he could have ended up like the man who killed Sealy. A mug shot is not a pretty picture, but at least Al Jefferson is seeing clearly through its frame.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
The Limits of Scripted Stoicism
A day after The Hurt Locker took the Oscar for best picture, I went to see The Messenger, another intense drama in a military setting. One involves bomb disposal in Iraq, the other casualty notification stateside. Neither is afraid of exploring the raw emotions unleashed by war.
The protagonist of The Messenger is a young enlisted soldier (played by Ben Foster) who has received commendations for bravery and also severely wounded in Iraq. He forms a two-man team with an older soldier (played by Woody Harrelson) who seeks to insulate him from the emotional demands of notification duty by instilling a rigid professionalism. Never touch the NOK (next of kin), the older man lectures, lapsing into bureaucratic jargon. The casualty notification officer (CNO) is to mpart the news in person but with scripted stoicism, leaving it to the local CAO (casualty assistance officer) to follow up.
It is scarcely surprising when cracks appear in the casualty notification officers' carefully choreographed ritual. The veteran officer initially claims to be in A.A., but as the film progresses he succumbs to bouts of public drunkeness. The younger soldier eventually confesses to the other about how a drunk driver killed his father - and that his father was that drunk driver. The confession continues in a later scene when the younger, decorated soldier admits to suicidal thoughts while being treated for his war injuries.
Naturally, the fissures in the CNO persona become most vivid when one of them feels genuine sympathy and affection for a woman who must be notified of her husband's death. But introducing this plotline doesn't mean The Messenger is an incipient romantic comedy. It's more like eros and thanatos in a dead heat.
The protagonist of The Messenger is a young enlisted soldier (played by Ben Foster) who has received commendations for bravery and also severely wounded in Iraq. He forms a two-man team with an older soldier (played by Woody Harrelson) who seeks to insulate him from the emotional demands of notification duty by instilling a rigid professionalism. Never touch the NOK (next of kin), the older man lectures, lapsing into bureaucratic jargon. The casualty notification officer (CNO) is to mpart the news in person but with scripted stoicism, leaving it to the local CAO (casualty assistance officer) to follow up.
It is scarcely surprising when cracks appear in the casualty notification officers' carefully choreographed ritual. The veteran officer initially claims to be in A.A., but as the film progresses he succumbs to bouts of public drunkeness. The younger soldier eventually confesses to the other about how a drunk driver killed his father - and that his father was that drunk driver. The confession continues in a later scene when the younger, decorated soldier admits to suicidal thoughts while being treated for his war injuries.
Naturally, the fissures in the CNO persona become most vivid when one of them feels genuine sympathy and affection for a woman who must be notified of her husband's death. But introducing this plotline doesn't mean The Messenger is an incipient romantic comedy. It's more like eros and thanatos in a dead heat.
Monday, February 22, 2010
DWI: A Pervasive Problem
DWI is a pervasive problem in Minnesota and around the country.
One in eight Minnesotans of driving age has been convicted at least once for drunken driving. According to data from the state patrol, there are about 35,000 arrests for DWI every year in Minnesota. This in a state with a total population of only 5 million.
A recurring theme for the media is to report on the arrest of drivers whose previous DWIs number in the teens. For example, on Christmas Eve last year, a man named Paul Garray lost control of his car on Highway 61/Interstate 494 in Newport. The state patrol arrested him after a breath test showed a blood alcohol content of twice the legal limit of 0.08.
The Star Trib dutifully reported that although Garray had as many as 19 previous DWIs on his record, the Newport city prosecutor could bring only bring only gross misdemeanor charges. Under Minnesota law, it takes four convictions in a ten-year period to make DWI punishable as a felony carrying a prison sentence of up to three years. Garray could not be charged with a felony because only two of his previous convictions had been in the last ten years.
Understandably, many people were not satisfied with this outcome. Mothers Against Drunk Driving called for more mandatory sentences that include the required use of ignition interlock devices. These devices force offenders to blow into them periodically, and the vehicle does not operate if the alcohol level is unacceptable.
County attorneys also weighed in. James Backstrom of Dakota County said there should be a lifetime limit, allowing DWI to be charged as a felony when the limit is reached regardless of how many occurred in the previous ten years. Doug Johnson of Washington County said there should be serious jail time even for first offenses.
Many of the rest of us have concerns about DWI laws, too. To the average citizen, the legal system’s inability to intervene effectively against chronic offenders is mystifying. Why is the problem so seemingly intractable?
Steve Simon, a University of Minnesota professor who directs the state’s drunken-driving task force, provides some context. For one thing, he points out, people who rack up multiple DWIs are usually chemically dependent. They also often have many other problems in addition to alcoholism.
So it’s not just a matter of an incomprehensible justice system. Drunk driving laws are, rather, a reflection of a complicated social reality in contemporary America. We cling to our freedom too tightly − and in the continuing carnage on the roads, this carries real and often deadly consequences..
One in eight Minnesotans of driving age has been convicted at least once for drunken driving. According to data from the state patrol, there are about 35,000 arrests for DWI every year in Minnesota. This in a state with a total population of only 5 million.
A recurring theme for the media is to report on the arrest of drivers whose previous DWIs number in the teens. For example, on Christmas Eve last year, a man named Paul Garray lost control of his car on Highway 61/Interstate 494 in Newport. The state patrol arrested him after a breath test showed a blood alcohol content of twice the legal limit of 0.08.
The Star Trib dutifully reported that although Garray had as many as 19 previous DWIs on his record, the Newport city prosecutor could bring only bring only gross misdemeanor charges. Under Minnesota law, it takes four convictions in a ten-year period to make DWI punishable as a felony carrying a prison sentence of up to three years. Garray could not be charged with a felony because only two of his previous convictions had been in the last ten years.
Understandably, many people were not satisfied with this outcome. Mothers Against Drunk Driving called for more mandatory sentences that include the required use of ignition interlock devices. These devices force offenders to blow into them periodically, and the vehicle does not operate if the alcohol level is unacceptable.
County attorneys also weighed in. James Backstrom of Dakota County said there should be a lifetime limit, allowing DWI to be charged as a felony when the limit is reached regardless of how many occurred in the previous ten years. Doug Johnson of Washington County said there should be serious jail time even for first offenses.
Many of the rest of us have concerns about DWI laws, too. To the average citizen, the legal system’s inability to intervene effectively against chronic offenders is mystifying. Why is the problem so seemingly intractable?
Steve Simon, a University of Minnesota professor who directs the state’s drunken-driving task force, provides some context. For one thing, he points out, people who rack up multiple DWIs are usually chemically dependent. They also often have many other problems in addition to alcoholism.
So it’s not just a matter of an incomprehensible justice system. Drunk driving laws are, rather, a reflection of a complicated social reality in contemporary America. We cling to our freedom too tightly − and in the continuing carnage on the roads, this carries real and often deadly consequences..
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Reducing Drunken Driving Deaths: Still Miles to Go
States that target drunken driving for tough law enforcement have seen significant decreases in fatal, alcohol-related crashes. Federal data released earlier this month showed fatality rates down in 40 states and the District of Columbia. According to the Department of Transportation, the number of people killed by drunken driving declined from 13,041 in 2007 to 11,773 in 2008.
This was a 7 percent decrease in one year, and a 44 percent drop since 21,1113 people were killed in 1982. The figures have been trending downward since then, in no small part because Mothers Against Drunk Driving did so much to focus public attention − and exert political pressure − on the issue.
But nearly 12,000 deaths is still far too many. As Doug Berman has pointed out, society's response to drunken driving remains flawed on many levels. He argues, for example, that greater use should be made of ignition-interlock devices, which would require drivers to blow into a tube that checks blood alcohol content before starting the vehicle.
This was a 7 percent decrease in one year, and a 44 percent drop since 21,1113 people were killed in 1982. The figures have been trending downward since then, in no small part because Mothers Against Drunk Driving did so much to focus public attention − and exert political pressure − on the issue.
But nearly 12,000 deaths is still far too many. As Doug Berman has pointed out, society's response to drunken driving remains flawed on many levels. He argues, for example, that greater use should be made of ignition-interlock devices, which would require drivers to blow into a tube that checks blood alcohol content before starting the vehicle.
Memories of Malik
Former Timberwolves coach Flip Saunders returned to Target Center again last night, this time as coach of the Washington Wizards. Before the game, he told the Star Tribune that every visit back to the place where he coached for a decade was nostalgic, but that the strongest emotion is always looking up to the rafters and seeing the retired jersey of Malik Sealy, who was killed by a drunken driver on May 20, 2000.
On that fateful night, Sealy, a 30-year-old guard who had played college ball at St. John’s, was headed home after attending a birthday party in downtown Minneapolis for his teammate and best friend, Kevin Garnett. On Highway 100 in St. Louis Park, his sport utility vehicle was struck head-on by a truck going the wrong way. The driver of the truck, Souksangouame Phengsene, 43, had a blood alcohol content of 0.19 percent − more than twice the legal limit in Minnesota − at the time he struck and killed Sealy.
Nine and a half years after Sealy’s death, his coach remains deeply affected by the tragedy. “I still wake up now at 4:06 because that’s when the call came from the police station,” Saunders told the Star Trib. “There are still times, even now, when I wake up at that time for some reason. Crazy.”
Crazy, too, is the justice system’s tolerance for chronic drunk driving offenders. At the time he caused Sealy’s death, Phengsene already had one previous drunken driving conviction on his record. After pleading guilty to criminal vehicular homicide in Sealy’s death, he served three years in prison. He was released in July 2003.
In 2006, however, Phengsene was arrested for DUI again − this time in the suburb of Crystal, with a blood alcohol level of 0.21 percent. He was sentenced to less than a year in the workhouse, but was given a 3 1/2-year probation term, on the condition that another DUI violation would lead to prison. Because Phengsene’s 2003 conviction was for vehicular homicide, not DUI, that conviction could not be used to enhance the sentence on the 2006 conviction.
In early April of 2008, when Flip Saunders returned to Target Center with the Detroit Pistons, Phengsene had just been arrested for DUI again. After drinking 10-12 beers, he was arrested on 35W near 36th Street in south Minneapolis with a blood alcohol content of over 0.20 percent.
This time, Phengsene was sentneced to a prison term of 4/1 years, with a requirement of serving at least 2/3 of that time behind bars, as well as 5 years on probation. The sentencing judge also revoked Phengsene's probation on the 2006 DUI sentence and chose to make the 2006 and 2008 sentences consecutive rather than concurrent. Adding 4 1/2 and 3 1/2, the Star Tribune came up with 8 years, though only 2/3 of that will actually be spent in prison. The remaining 1/3 will be on supervised release − followed by the 5 years of probation on the first sentence.
I doubt that any of these numbers run through Saunders’s mind when he wakes up at 4:06. And if the trauma and tragedy of Malik Sealy’s untimtely death are still so tangible for him, what must it be like for Sealy’s wife and son?
On that fateful night, Sealy, a 30-year-old guard who had played college ball at St. John’s, was headed home after attending a birthday party in downtown Minneapolis for his teammate and best friend, Kevin Garnett. On Highway 100 in St. Louis Park, his sport utility vehicle was struck head-on by a truck going the wrong way. The driver of the truck, Souksangouame Phengsene, 43, had a blood alcohol content of 0.19 percent − more than twice the legal limit in Minnesota − at the time he struck and killed Sealy.
Nine and a half years after Sealy’s death, his coach remains deeply affected by the tragedy. “I still wake up now at 4:06 because that’s when the call came from the police station,” Saunders told the Star Trib. “There are still times, even now, when I wake up at that time for some reason. Crazy.”
Crazy, too, is the justice system’s tolerance for chronic drunk driving offenders. At the time he caused Sealy’s death, Phengsene already had one previous drunken driving conviction on his record. After pleading guilty to criminal vehicular homicide in Sealy’s death, he served three years in prison. He was released in July 2003.
In 2006, however, Phengsene was arrested for DUI again − this time in the suburb of Crystal, with a blood alcohol level of 0.21 percent. He was sentenced to less than a year in the workhouse, but was given a 3 1/2-year probation term, on the condition that another DUI violation would lead to prison. Because Phengsene’s 2003 conviction was for vehicular homicide, not DUI, that conviction could not be used to enhance the sentence on the 2006 conviction.
In early April of 2008, when Flip Saunders returned to Target Center with the Detroit Pistons, Phengsene had just been arrested for DUI again. After drinking 10-12 beers, he was arrested on 35W near 36th Street in south Minneapolis with a blood alcohol content of over 0.20 percent.
This time, Phengsene was sentneced to a prison term of 4/1 years, with a requirement of serving at least 2/3 of that time behind bars, as well as 5 years on probation. The sentencing judge also revoked Phengsene's probation on the 2006 DUI sentence and chose to make the 2006 and 2008 sentences consecutive rather than concurrent. Adding 4 1/2 and 3 1/2, the Star Tribune came up with 8 years, though only 2/3 of that will actually be spent in prison. The remaining 1/3 will be on supervised release − followed by the 5 years of probation on the first sentence.
I doubt that any of these numbers run through Saunders’s mind when he wakes up at 4:06. And if the trauma and tragedy of Malik Sealy’s untimtely death are still so tangible for him, what must it be like for Sealy’s wife and son?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
