Drunk Driving’ Category
Increase in Binge Drinking Could Mean More Drunk Driving Accidents
Friday, January 13th, 2012
According to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, binge drinking among Americans in 2010 was slightly higher than in 2009. Not only that, the number of drinks being consumed during each episode of binge drinking also increased.
One out of every six Americans reported binge drinking in 2010. Additionally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that during each binging episode, the average drinks consumed was about 8.
Binge drinking can be defined as the consumption of at least 5 alcohol beverages by adult males, and 4 alcoholic beverages by adult females during a single episode. ...
Need to Focus on DUI Involving Women
Saturday, December 10th, 2011
As a Houston car accident lawyer, I'm very familiar with the drunk driving problem in the Houston region and around Texas. These high DUI rates are the result of poor laws against intoxicated driving, lack of enforcement, lack of sobriety checkpoints and a number of other reasons. Men constitute the majority of drunk driving arrests in Texas as around the country. However, women are narrowing this gap.
According to research by the Traffic Injury Research Foundation, the number of women arrested for drunk driving around the country increased by 36% over the last decade. Not only are more...
Efforts to Develop in-Car Alcohol Detection Device Continue
Saturday, November 19th, 2011
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has handed at least two contracts to develop an in-car alcohol detection device prototype. The agency however, has strict criteria for any device that it will ultimately approve of for installation in vehicles.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is collaborating with manufacturers to develop an in- car alcohol detection device that will go beyond ignition interlock devices to prevent intoxicated motorists from driving. Conventional ignition interlock devices of the kind that are required in many states for DUI offenses require a motorist to breathe into a breathalyzer device. The device detects alcohol on...
Canadian Drivers Have Lower Risk of Drunk Driving Accidents
Thursday, October 27th, 2011
There are strong cultural similarities between the US and Canada and comparable drinking practices. There is also a similarity in the drunk driving accident rates in the two countries. In spite of this, a new study finds that Canadian drivers, who are driving in the United States, have a much lower likelihood of being involved in fatal alcohol-related car crashes.
The study finds that while alcohol use was a factor in about 27% of fatal accidents involving American and Mexican drivers, it was a factor in just 11% of fatal accidents involving Canadian motorists. These results are intriguing because of...
Drunk Driving Accident Numbers Are Down, But Risks from Young Drivers, Binge Drinkers Remain
Wednesday, October 5th, 2011
Drunk driving as a factor in fatal traffic accidents in the United States is not as potent as it used to be a few years ago. However, the risks from young drivers, especially male drivers, and binge drinkers continue to remain high.
According to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, these groups of drivers accounted for a high number of intoxicated driving episodes per year. About 4 million American adults reported at least one incident of impaired driving in 2010, a decrease of 30% from 2006.
Not so surprisingly to Houston car accident lawyers,...
Two Pedestrians Killed in Houston Drunk Driving Accident
Saturday, September 24th, 2011
Drunk driving has claimed two more victims in Houston. This week, two pedestrians were killed in a drunk driving accident involving a hit-and-run driver in southwest Houston. According to the police, an intoxicated motorist was driving a Toyota Corolla, when she ran a red light and hit a young man and woman walking on the street.
The female pedestrian was dragged for about 50 yards. The motorist would have continued driving on, if witnesses at the scene had not been alert enough to stop her. They detained her until police arrived. Both pedestrians have been confirmed dead in the accident. ...
Houston Driver Charged in Fatal Accident
Sunday, August 7th, 2011
A Houston man, who recently caused a fatal drunk driving accident that killed a woman, has been charged with intoxication manslaughter. The twenty-two-year-old man was driving a car that crashed into another vehicle on the W. Sam Houston Pkwy feeder near Harwin.
According to police, the man was driving at excessive speeds. At some point, he ran a red light and crashed into a Honda Civic. The impact was deadly, and caused the Civic to spin around several times before it split into two and exploded into flames. The driver of the Civic was killed.
According to some witnesses, the drunk...
TV Star’s Death Puts Spotlight on Accident Risks from Speeding, Drunk Driving
Tuesday, June 28th, 2011
Last week, Ryan Dunn, the star of MTV's “Jackass” series was killed in an accident that police are blamed on drunk driving and speeding. His passenger was also killed in the accident. The two had been traveling down a Pennsylvania highway when their car went over a guardrail and into a ravine. Dunn was killed at the scene.
According to police reports, his BAC level at the time of the accident was .196%. That's more than twice the legally allowed.08% limit. Just a few minutes before the tragedy, Dunn had posted a picture of him and his friends drinking on...
Quarter of All Fatal Car Accidents Involve Drugged Driving
Sunday, June 26th, 2011
Drivers, who were driving under the influence of drugs, were involved in approximately 25% of all fatal single vehicle accidents between 1998 and 2009. This indicates to Houston car accident attorneys that driving under the influence of drugs is a much bigger factor in accidents than we currently know.
According to the research, which was based on data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System, drivers in approximately 25% of all fatal accidents had traces of drugs in their system, while 37% were driving under the influence of alcohol greater than the .08% limit. 50% of the drivers were...
Even Low Levels of Alcohol Can Impair Driving, Lead to Accidents
Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011
Persons who are driving with a blood alcohol content as low as .01% could be at risk of accidents that end with serious injuries, compared to persons who have no traces of alcohol in their system at all. A new study indicates that even people who have a.01 percent BAC level in their system are at a high risk of being involved in accidents that end with severe injuries.
The legally allowed limit of blood alcohol in the United States is .08%. However, according to the study, even people with a .01% BAC could be at a high risk of...
