Very frequently, no matter what area one lives, we either view on television or read in the newspaper about another DUI fatality labeled as an accident. Reckless DUI fatalities must not be labeled as accidents, but rather they must be distinguished as devastating tragedies.
The families and friends of victims of DUI tragedies struggle daily with the transition from grieving to coping with the thought that the victim”s senseless death was because someone consciously made a selfish decision to drink and drive. They chose selfishness over responsibility. That decision is no accident. That decision instantly shreds the lives of family, friends and many people.
How many times have these negligent drivers been driving under the influence and have not been caught? How many times have these drivers” conscious, selfish acts of reckless driving been diminished, freeing the negligent driver to do this again to another family? Every day innocent people get hurt by the carelessness of these reckless drivers.
DUI driving is wrong and against the law. The DUI driver must not be allowed to get by with a slap on the wrist. DUI drivers who are responsible for the death or injury of an innocent person should receive the maximum sentence allowed by law. They must be made to face the consequences of their selfish act.
Most DUI drivers are incapable of feeling true remorse, as they convince themselves to believe it was an accident. If they convince themselves it was an accident, then their guilt is minimized. Some may utter the words “I”m Sorry,” but those words are merely an instant, built in mechanism that is used when they are caught. The selfish, reckless driver is not the one left behind to pick up the pieces to a family”s life. Their lives go on, as they will never feel the pain of suddenly losing a loved one because it was not their loved one who was killed. The road back for a family and friends to begin the healing process is long and painful. The lives of everyone are forever changed due to the selfishness of the reckless DUI driver.
We must all do whatever we can together to help prevent these devastating tragedies. No matter what one”s age is, please stop and think of what the consequences of drinking and reckless driving can do. Don”t allow yourself to be the one who selfishly took the life of a loved one away from their family. Don”t be the one who forced a child to grow up without their parents because your drinking and reckless driving claimed their parent”s life. Ultimately, don”t be the one who takes the life of a child whose life has only barely begun. Imagine if you can, what your life would be like if suddenly your loved one was killed because of the selfishness of a DUI driver. Would the casual words you hear from the reckless driver “I”m Sorry” make your devastation go away?
There could never ever be enough “I”m Sorry”s to take away the pain and emptiness that is in the hearts of a family and friends who have lost their loved one due to a selfish, DUI driver. A piece of their heart will always be missing just because someone selfishly chose to drive a motor vehicle while under the influence.
Judy Thein was the mayor for the City of Clearlake in 2005 and is now the vice mayor.
