Crash CD, Final Assignment

On the crash CD I was identified as the Bicyclist. After the Crash I went to the hospital, and when I woke up I had some injuries, but also had some memory loss. There were Four places I went to find out what happened to me, some facts about drunk driving, what can happen when you let your friends do it, and what can happen when people who aren't stopped by friends and family, hit other cars/people in the roadway.

The First place I went in the virtual world was to the Hospital. At the Hospital I was told that beginning drivers have the highest crash rates and the risk of a teen crash increases 50% after one or two drinks. A crash doesn't have to be severe or at high speeds to cause damage. When a crash occurs, 3 collisions happen, your car into another object, your body into the inside of the car/another object, and your organs to the inside of your body. They told me that in these types of crashes, ones involving drunk drivers, that injuries are common. I learned that a seat belt reduces your risk of dying in a car crash by 60%. In fact in one case, when a driver was wearing his seat belt and totaled the car, the driver left the crash sight with a few scratches. Then I learned about the effects of alcohol. Some effects of alcohol are, slowed messages to the brain(slow reaction time), slurred speech, blurred vision, and poor judgement. I also learned about the effects of Marijuana. Marijuana can make you misjudge your speed, misjudge your braking, it can also affect your perceptions. With Alcohol and Marijuana there are 5 different parts of the brain effected. The frontal lobe under the effect of alcohol, causes bad decisions. The Hippocampus under the effect of alcohol can cause memory blackouts; under the effect of marijuana, can cause memory loss, and reduced attention. The Medula under the effect of alcohol, can cause brain damage or death. The Limbic System under the effect of marijuana, can cause missing danger signals, and emotional disruption. The Cerebellum under the effect of marijuana, can cause poor coordination, and poor road tracking.

The Second place I went was the School. When I went to the school I found out that for every teen killed in a motor vehicle crash, about 100 others suffer non-fatal injuries. I also learned about healthy thrills that should be used in place of drinking and smoking. Some healthy thrills are, trying new foods, sports, or bungee jumping. The Emotional Impact of a drunk driving accident is different for every person who is involved. For the impaired driver, they feel regret, and strongly for what they have done. The impaired driver that I learned about was aware of his condition, when he saw the car ahead lose control and become airborne. He saw a body get ejected, he pulled over, and saw that the body was on the ground shaking. When the police arrived he failed a sobriety test and was arrested for a DUI. The man said that the first night in prison was the hardest and he felt horrible. Later he was charged with negligent homicide and spent time in prison for it. The second person that I learned about was a victim. She had been driving to a friends 16th birthday party, and it was the farthest she had ever driven at night. It was 10 miles away from her house, and the drunk driver was driving coming the other direction. The driver drifted over the center line and she was hit drivers side to drivers side. She is ashamed of what happened to her, when she came home from the hospital she could not use the shower, so she had to be hosed down outside of her house. She also said that she still limps, her ankle swells and she has many scars. The third and final group I heard about was a husband and wife who had lost there daughter. She was an athletic girl and had a scholarship to an art school. The crash happened during the summer, and she was coming home from the beach with friends. When they had a green light a car ran a red light and T-Boned them on the Passengers Side. The car with the impaired driver was going 70 mph. The parents of the girl said that when you are watching TV or a movie, the emotions that they feel on screen, are real. The Parents of the girl also said that if you are a teenager and have been drinking to call your parents, They would much rather get that call then one that you are dead.
While I was still at the school I learned about ways to get your friends to not drive drunk. First, I learned that dealing directly and firmly with people taking the risk has bee shown to be effective more than 50% of the time. Here are 5 ways I learned about to directly deal with a friend who has been drinking and wants to drive.
1) Get the keys: do it away from the crowd so that they will be less embarrassed.
2) Find another driver: get another driver and tell the drinking friend about it while you are relaxed so that they don't get defensive.
3) Delay the driver: tell them to wait a while, that they don't need to leave just yet, it works well when your friend trusts you.
4) Use another Angle: use different words than drunk or high to describe your friends condition. Tell them that they are out of it, and that's why they can't drive.
5) Let them go: This is when your friend doesn't trust you or you can not convince them to stay. Call someone and let them know what is going on.

The 3rd place I went was the Lawyers office. While there the first thing I learned about while there was a case where a woman had been driving drunk and hit a car full of teenagers. This case is actually the same case where the daughter of the couple I learned about died. Some facts from the case file, were that there were 4 dead and one was injured, the defendant had had 2 previous DUI charges, and they were looking to charge her with 4 counts of 2nd degree murder, and 1 count of assault. The Defense's story was not very good. People had not seen the defendant intoxicated, and when she was taken to the hopital, the medication she was given could have effected her blood tests, and that her blood samples were not refridgerated. The Prosecution said that between the hours of 12 and 2:30 she had had 5 drinks, she ran a light at 60 mph, lied to the police about the number of drinks she had, and had a BAL of .21 - .28. There were statements made by the family members of the Deceased, about why they did not deserve to die. The Verdict was 14 1/2 - 16 years for each count of 2nd degree murder, and 2 years for the DUI and assault. making it so that she spent a minimumof 60 years in prison. The second thing I learned about at the Lawyers office was the Financial costs of a DUI. The Definition of a totaled car is when the cost to repair the damage is greater than the value of the car. The costs for different problems are really quite large. A car tow costs $50, a car storage per day is $137, a restricted liscens is $100, the insurance is $10,800, an Alcohol Education Program is $585, The Minimum fine is $480, the cost for a defense attorney is $2000, the court cost is $406, a Probation fee is $44, and the fund for a head injury is $120. The total cost is $14,722, this is just on your first offense, you also get 2 points on your license and they stay there for 7 years, you also get 3 years of probation.

The fourth and final place i visited was the police station. Here I learned that crashes are twice as likely when teenage drivers have teenage passengers. I also learned that from 10 pm - 1 am drivers are most likely to be drunk. I also learned how to identify a drunk driver, they might have a slow respose to signals, they might have their head lights off, they may be weaving, following too closely, turning abruply, drifting, swerving or making wide turns. I also learned that inorder to get federal money, states are required to have zero tolerance for underage drinkers. This means that even if you have a very low BAL you can be arrested for DUI. When you get pulled over they have to have a reason for suspicion of DUI, for example speeding, weaving, or not signaling. When you are pulled over, you are required to provide your license, and proof of insurance, you also may be asked to perform a field sobriety test. I f you are arrested, you are read your miranda rights, are handcuffed, placed in the back of the police car, and taken to the station. When you get there they will test your BAL using your breath, urine, or blood. Afterwards there will be bail to post or you will be released on your own recognizance. Soon after you will be arraigned, then you will have a trial, where you will be sentenced.

I think that if people just didn't drink then they would never have this problem. Also that if you are going to drink that you should be sure to travel in a group so that you can have one person who will not drink and then drive everyone else home. That would be the best option. But other people should always listen to their friends, because if they are truly your friend then they will always be trying to help you.