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With each incident of alcohol-related accidents that are reported, it becomes increasingly evident that drunk driving is a significant danger that faces college students today. Whether it be the students themselves that drive under the influence or students that are affected out on the road by others driving drunk, drinking and driving can be a threat to any college student.
According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), researchers estimate that each year, 1,825 college students between the ages of 18 and 24 die from alcohol-related unintentional injuries, including motor-vehicle crashes.
The NIAAA also reported that in 2013, 39 percent of college students ages 18-22 engaged in binge drinking (which they classified as 5 or more drinks on an occasion) in the past month compared with 33.4 percent of other people of the same age .
Alcohol-impaired driving and related motor-vehicle accidents among college students continue to be a major public-health concern, says the Addiction Technology Transfer Center Network (ATTC). The ATTC cited a 2010 study that found that the prevalence and frequency of alcohol-related traffic-risk behaviors significantly increased when students turned 21 years old.
“National studies have shown that approximately 25 percent of college students report that they have driven while intoxicated in the past month, and an even greater percentage report having driven after having any amount of alcohol and/or ridden with a driver believed intoxicated,” stated the ATTC on their national website.
These statistics suggest that the problem is not only that students are driving while intoxicated, but that even more students are knowingly getting into cars with drivers that are under the influence, putting all of the passengers as well as everyone they pass on the roads in danger.
In late Feb., the consequences of driving while drunk became evident for a Wesley Chapel home when four students crashed into a yard at around 3:30 in the morning. The yard belonged to Carmen Patten and her family. All of the passengers lived, but they left the scene before authorities arrived. Patton informed that the passengers left their purses in the car along with open containers of alcohol, marijuana, and pipes.
Patten added that after the students stumbled out of the vehicle, the driver told them to run. One of the girls asked Patten to not call anyone, as they just needed to get back to Saint Leo.
The portion of the guiderail that the students crashed into in front of Patten’s home was wrapped around a tree, intertwined between some of its front branches. Almost the entire front of the vehicle was crushed in the impact.
Some Saint Leo students have even fallen victim to people driving while under the influence.
Senior Sports Business major Courtney Fowler recounts that she was driving home one evening in Sept. of 2012 when she saw a pickup truck flying towards her in her lane going around 80 mph trying to pass the other cars in their lane. The driver tried to get back over in his lane but then spun out of control and hit her head on.
“I panicked and screamed for help after I noticed my car smashed in front of me. The guys in the truck got out and ran to hide all of their beer into the woods right in front of me, instead of helping me get out of my smoking car,” stated Fowler.
Fowler tore her PCL (posterior cruciate ligament) and burned her knees in the accident. The police later found the hidden beer in the woods and matched it to one of the beers that was left in the truck. The driver was eventually arrested and charged with a DWI (driving while intoxicated) .
Efforts to combat the dangers of driving while under the influence are being made all around the country. There are not only car services available to take people home that aren’t able to drive, such as Uber and Lyft, but there are now also many services in cities around the country that have the ability to also take your car home if you’re unable to drive. Connecticut, New Jersey, and Rhode Island have these types of services that take cars home as well in every county of their states, according to the National Directory of Designated Driver Services.
In Pasco County, there are two of these types of designated driver services: Brittany Nation Foundation and Dryver.
Despite the information and many resources available to help lower the number of alcohol-related accidents, the consequences of drinking and driving continue to affect college students all around the country. These statistics and personal recounts of the effects of driving under the influence suggest that this issue will not go away or even begin to improve unless college students and young people in general are educated on the possible consequences of driving while drunk and the different options available of safely getting home after drinking.
Student Code of Conduct
The following is what the Saint Leo University’s Student Code of Conduct handbook 2016-2017 states regarding related incidents.
The handbook states, “Excessive drinking and intoxication will not be tolerated. Members of the Saint Leo community who choose to drink alcohol irresponsibly will be held responsible for their behavior that occurs while under the influence.” In relation to this policy, it also references the Core Values of Community, Respect, Personal Development, and Integrity.
The Code of Conduct also states that any violation of Florida State laws regarding alcohol will be considered grounds for University disciplinary action, including driving with a blood alcohol level (BAC) of 0.08% or more.
“Although the University is not responsible or liable for student off-campus events or behavior, it does reserve the right, in the interest of protecting students from harm and as part of fulfilling its educational mission, to take action in response to behavior off campus that violates University expectations, Core Values and Policies and when the University determines that its interests as an academic community are involved,” states the Code of Conduct handbook.
