Drunk Driving: not only the driver's fault

Parent Cafe
1

<p>I’m watching a drunk driving thing on 20/20. Two drunk friends get in an accident: one is killed. </p>

<p>People condemn the kid behind the wheel. So far NO ONE has pointed out that the kid who died was drunk too. The parents of the dead girl want her to go to jail for 15 years. They apparently NEVER admit that their daughter was drunk too, and SHE was equally at fault. No one bound her and forced her into the car. She could easily have been the driver, the friend could be dead.</p>

<p>This seems to be the norm in these cases. It drives me crazy.</p>

2

<p>How old was the dead girl? How old is the driver?</p>

3

<p>I think they were both 18. They were lifelong best friends. Apparently they were both drinking and dancing in a club.</p>

4

<p>I think the parents of the dead girl have some responsibility here.</p>

5

<p>So perhaps states need to look at a “RWI” for those that are too ipmaired to know who to ride with…</p>

6

<p>dragonmom, public drunkeness statutes would probably cover it. </p>

<p>What always makes me crazy in these situations is that it seems to be impossible for anyone to admit that the dead person WAS ALSO DRUNK. </p>

<p>My heart breaks for her parents, but they sacrifice all respect when they attempt to pin all blame on the friend and agitate for a maximum sentence.</p>

7

<p>I take back my last opinion. I thought the girls were highschool seniors. They were actually already in college. The parents could not do much. Here is the story:
[Drunken</a> Driving Crash Shattered Teen’s Life - ABC News](<a href=“Drunken Driving Crash Shattered Teen's Life - ABC News”>Drunken Driving Crash Shattered Teen's Life - ABC News)</p>

8

<p>I saw about the last 20 minutes of the show. I was surprised at how the parents of the dead girl treated the driver and her parents. These people were lifelong friends, and it could have just as easily been the other way around. I would have thought that over time, enough of the pain would subside so that they would at least talk to the other family and not want to put the friend away for 15 years.</p>

9

<p>I agree. It drives me nuts. I don’t really drink and usually am the dd for people. However, I’ve had people offer me rides (when I didn’t have a car) and I said no because they were under the influence of drugs/alcohol. Others said yes. I think the person getting in the car should be able to realize it is not a good situation and discourage the driver from driving, or simply not go. I think its an unfortunate situation, but it easily could have been the other way around.</p>

10

<p>Recently, I got into a discussion with a college student – I’ll call her “Dee” whose friend was angry at the “Dee” because when police came to Dee’s door looking for her friend, Dee told police where her friend lived. It ended up that the friend had the night before hit another car while the friend was drunk. Friend was so drunk that she didn’t even remember the accident.</p>

<p>Both Dee and friend had gone clubbing, and friend had been driving, but the friend had left Dee at the club, so Dee had had to find her own way home. Dee was still angry at friend for doing that.</p>

<p>I had to point out to Dee that she had been willing to ride home with a friend who was drunk.</p>