the death toll in alcohol related car accidents

The huge auditorium is filled with grim-faced teenagers who sit in complete silence as the family of the young girl struggle to finish what they have to say. Photographs are displayed on the stage; a girl smiling on a swing, in the sand at the beach, and laughing with her friends. Who would have thought that this girl would be among the 25,000 people killed by drunk drivers a year in the United States. The students sit silently watching the couple grieve for their child, many feeling guilty and embarrassed; each of them have heard of or are friends with people who have driven while intoxicated. Yet, few teenagers think that it could ever happen to them.

In 1991, a boy named Jason was racing friends and driving drunk. They all thought they were having a good time, but that all changed in a split second when he caused a crash that claimed the life of his 15 year-old sister, Erin. Jason's actions resulted in him being convicted of vehicular manslaughter, and being sent to prison for a 6-year period. Jason was one of the lucky ones. Unfortunately, his younger sister Erin was not.

While organizations in which people learn the consequences of drunk driving and ways to avoid peer pressure may work for the adolescent part of society, what about the adults who already know these consequences and choose to drive drunk anyway? In these cases, the government needs to provide better treatment and longer sentences to those who are caught. Alcoholics Anonymous has been proven to work best for most adults and should serve as a treatment base. However, transfers to such places definitely can not happen immediately. Those caught drinking and driving should only be transferred to treatment centers after a minimum of 30 days in a correction facility. This would serve as a "wake up call" for people who are capable of risking their lives, as well as the lives of others.

Another possible solution to the problem of drunk driving in the United States is sobriety checkpoints on Friday and Saturday nights. This plan could be implemented in many ways. First, policemen could situate themselves at certain points along streets and highways, and pull people over at random to check and make certain that they are not under the influence of alcohol. This way we could attempt to stop the problem before the accident occurs, rather than waiting for the inevitable. People found to be driving while under the influence will be subject to fine, arrest, or imprisonment, accompanied by a suspension of their license. Thus, rather than waiting for the accident to occur before getting these people help, we can eliminate the threat in the first place. Also, for those who might contemplate "having a few drinks" before driving, there is now a possibility that they may get pulled over at random and be subject to arrest. Sadly, many people only become concerned when there is a possibility of arrest, and fail to consider the other consequences of driving drunk.

Leonard Zailskas, founder of Braintree Alternative Center Substance Abuse Program, feels that in order to protect society from potential damage such individuals can do on the road; drunk drivers should be given significant jail sentences followed by mandatory alcoholism treatment, and aftercare with Alcoholics Anonymous.

Therefore, it is obvious that drunk driving is a major problem in

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Approximate Word count = 1523
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page double spaced)