Monthly Archives: January 2012

On December 27, 2011, 17-year old Jonathan Humphrey II died after being involved in a car accident with a drunk driver. The day he was buried, January 1st of this year, another fatal auto accident involving a drunk driver killed 6-year old Emma Longstreet, who was traveling to church with her family. Both auto accidents occurred in Lexington County, which ranked second in the state for car accident fatalities in 2010, and 62 percent of these fatalities were caused by alleged drunk drivers. The Lexington County Sheriff’s Department and Highway Patrol claim, “enough is enough” when it comes to drunk driving related fatalities on South Carolina roadways. Lexington Country Sheriff James Metts had harsh words for would-be drunk drivers, announcing at a press conference that he was leading a crusade against drunk drivers and seeks to put additional troopers on the road. Sheriff Metts remarked, “When times are tough, you…
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Last week, this blog looked at distracted driving and wondered if it was the new drunk driving. There has been a recent push to outlaw cell phone use and texting, similar to the push for more stringent drunk driving laws in the 1980s. Currently, MADD ranks South Carolina as having the highest percentage of DUI related deaths in 2010 out of all 50 states and DC. MADD claims that 44 percent of car accident deaths in this state are DUI related, and the state subsidy of drunk driving fatalities from auto accidents costs taxpayers $1.74 billion. This is unacceptable. MADD is currently continuing its campaign for harsher drunk driving laws and prevention awareness. Its three stated goals include: Having high-visibility law enforcement on the roads to catch drunk drivers and increase awareness to discourage others Increase the use of ignition interlock devices for convicted drunk drivers The use of car…
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