Posts about Drunk Driving

Fairfax court goes light on speeding, DUI: At one recent session of Fairfax City court, the Town Attorney recommended very light punishments for egregious speeders and even for drunk drivers. (FABB) (Comment)

And...: Halloween is the second most dangerous holiday for pedestrians, mainly thanks to drunk drivers. (Patch) ... WMATA adds a disclaimer to the controversial "Defeat Jihad" ad. (DCist) ... Is it possible to build a green downtown parking garage? (Grid Chicago) (Comment)

One penalty rises, another too high?: DC increased penalties for drunk driving and set lower alcohol limits for commercial drivers. Meanwhile, DC drivers who speed in Virginia are getting a particularly heavy penalty. (Post) (Comment)

DC breathalyzers may return: The DC Council may bring back breathalyzer testing after it was suspended because of suspended inaccuracy. The bill would also lower the legal blood-alcohol content limit from .08 to .04 for commercial drivers. (Examiner) (Comment)

What crazy drivers do: A drunk driver drove into the Muni subway tunnels in San Francisco and traveled half a mile before getting stuck. (SF Chronicle) ... Anne Arundel police used DNA evidence to catch a hit and run driver who injured a cyclist. (Post) (Comment)

And...: Home prices in Prince George's County drop 35%. (Examiner) ... A drunk driver was sentenced to 20 years for a fatal crash. (Washington Times) ... Retail near the Chinatown Arch will finally be filled, for the highest retail rent in DC. (Post) (Comment)

And...: It's taking longer to inspect and modernize Metro's escalators. (Examiner) ... Drunk driving wasn't always considered a serious danger. (TBD) ... A third farmers market opens east of the Anacostia. (DCist) (Comment)

LAPD blames cyclists for being hit by drunk: A drunk driver injured 11 cyclists in Culver City, Calif. Yet the preliminary LAPD report blames "pedestrians in the roadway" as the main cause and makes many other excuses for the driver. (Bikeside LA, Streetsblog) (Comment)

Drunk driver gets 3.5 years for manslaughter: The Maryland woman who struck two pedestrians at 18th and U Streets NW, killing one and severely injuring the other, was sentenced to 3½ years in prison yesterday. (Post) (Comment)

The consequences of DUI leniency: A Potomac man has been arrested three times for severe drunk driving violations, but has never had his license suspended or revoked. ... A woman who killed two men while driving drunk was recently convicted of manslaughter. She, too, had previous DUIs on her record. (WUSA) (Comment)

Driver who killed cyclist gets 8 years: A former UMd football player who struck and killed a cyclist in Germantown last summer has been sentenced to 8 years in prison for manslaughter by motor vehicle. Apparently you have to blow a 0.18 BAC to be held accountable for killing another road user. (TBD On Foot) (Comment)

Struck in Montgomery County: It's been a bad few days for pedestrians in Montgomery County. A driver hit a child in a stroller in Aspen Hill on Friday, then a possibly-drunk driver killed two 26-year-olds on Rockville Pike around White Flint yesterday, and today a Gaithersburg police cruiser and its driver hit a 14-year-old boy while another driver hit a 7-year-old and an adult in Silver Spring, but all three only suffered minor injuries. (TBD) (Comment)

More sad news for bikes & peds: Maryland Green Party US Senate candidate Natasha Pettigrew was hit by a woman in an SUV while riding her bike. The woman drove 3 miles home where she noticed the bike lodged under her car. In related news, the alleged drunk driver in the Adams Morgan crash that killed one and severely injured another pedestrian has been charged with involuntary manslaughter. (TBD, Post, Jaime Fearer) ... Update: Even more sad news: Pettigrew has died of her injuries. (Comment)

Adams Morgan victim dies: Julia Bachleitner, one of the victims in last week's Adams Morgan crash, passed away yesterday. No news yet whether prosecutors will increase charges against the alleged drunk driver. (WTOP, TBD On Foot) (Comment)

Americans support restrictions for safer driving: Despite what AAA might say, Americans strongly support traffic cameras, ignition interlocks for DUI offenders, and allowing police to ticket seat belt violators without also requiring another traffic offense, a University of Minnesota study found. (USA Today, Ken Archer) (Comment)

In the courts: Biking while drunk does count as drunk driving, says the DC Court of Appeals (TheWashCycle) ... Arlington's lawsuit over HOT lanes won an early procedural ruling, though news reports don't explain what the ruling was about. Did it survive the motion to dismiss? (Examiner) (Comment)

Drive-thru booze: A Louisiana (where else) drive-thru sells daquiris and shots. It's apparently legal as long as they don't actually put the straw in the cup, but they can hand the driver the straw along with the cup. (Current TV via Upgrade: Travel Better) (Comment)

Posts about Drunk Driving

Smart Growth

Transit

Education & Safety

Public Space

Safe Streets

Historic Preservation

Government