#TAXI Urges Everyone to Plan Ahead This Holiday Season and Support MADD
By Guest Blogger | December 12, 2012 | Filed in: Drunk Driving

Provided by Michael Sachter, the Vice President of Marketing for CellWand Communications, the creators of #TAXI (PoundTaxi) mobile service that allows callers to get a cab anywhere, anytime across the U.S.  #TAXI, a proud MADD sponsor since 2006, is donating $0.50 of every call for taxis in the U.S. this November and December to help MADD in its mission to prevent drunk driving and support victims.

Drunk driving takes the lives of over 10,000 people in the US each year and injures almost 350,000 more.  Every single drunk driving crash is entirely preventable – all it takes not to drive drunk is to plan ahead.

I say plan ahead, because once you have started drinking, it’s too late.  One of the first things to be impaired by alcohol is judgment.  After drinking, people start to rationalize, saying things like “I haven’t had too many” or “I just need to make it home.”

This is especially true around the holiday, as alcohol is frequently a part of holiday celebrations.  Some people who don’t typically drink during the rest of the year and therefore are not used to having to find a safe way home, do so during the holidays at parties and family gatherings.  That’s why it’s important to remind everyone to plan ahead before your holiday celebration begins.

Here are some common ways to enjoy yourself while you are out and still getting home safely:

• Designate a driver.  The key is to designate a driver beforehand – someone who will not be drinking during the night.  Some people wait until after and designate the least drunk person to drive, which isn’t safe at all.  Being the designated driver can make you the hero of the party – after all, it’s a good friend who makes sure you get home safely.
• Call a cab.  A $30 cab ride is far better than the thousands of dollars that a drunk driving conviction can cost (if you are lucky and aren’t involved in a crash).  And it has never been easier to get a cab with mobile cab calling services like #TAXI (#8294) on any mobile phone.
• Stay over.  If you are at a friend’s house, they may be willing to let you sleep on their couch rather than risk your safety on the roadways.  (This is another good reason to plan ahead – it’s more polite to ask ahead of time, rather than to get drunk and try to stay over.)
• In some areas, there is quality public transportation available to get you home safely.

There are plenty of solutions to get you home safely this holiday season, so here’s hoping you have a happy, healthy, and safe holiday season.

NTSB Calls for Ignition Interlocks for All Offenders
By MADD | December 11, 2012 | Filed in: Drunk Driving

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) approved recommendations calling for all convicted drunk drivers to receive an ignition interlock device on their vehicles, as well as the development of new in-vehicle technologies, which could one day prevent a drunk driver from operating a vehicle. The NTSB's recommendations represent another milestone for MADD’s Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving®.

Currently, 17 states require interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers.  Ignition interlocks are critical to eliminating drunk driving, as a majority of convicted drunk drivers will continue to drive on a suspended license.  States that are enforcing all-offender ignition interlock laws, such as Arizona and Oregon, have cut DUI deaths in half, largely due to comprehensive interlock laws requiring all drunk drivers receive the device.

MADD looks forward to continuing to work with the NTSB to eliminate drunk driving.  It is now critical that the remaining 33 states act on this recommendation by enacting and enforcing laws requiring ALL convicted drunk drivers to install an ignition interlock device.

The 17 states that require ignition interlocks for all convicted drunk drivers are: Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Missouri, Nebraska, New York, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Virginia and Washington. If you are a resident of one of the other 33 states, contact your legislators and tell them you support saving lives and eliminating repeat drunk driving offenses by requiring ignition interlocks for all convicted DUI offenders.

Drunk Driving Fatalities Fall Below 10,000
By MADD | December 10, 2012 | Filed in: Drunk Driving

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) released new data today showing 9,878 drunk driving fatalities in 2011.  As a result, MADD is celebrating an historic milestone in the nation’s fight against drunk driving: the first time drunk driving fatalities have fallen below 10,000.
Not only did the number of people killed in drunk driving crashes in 2011 (9,878) drop by 2.5 percent from the number killed in 2010 (10,136), but this decline outpaced the 1.9 percent decrease in overall highway deaths.  

This drop in deaths is an important milestone in our nation’s ongoing fight against drunk driving and is further validation that MADD’s Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving® is working. 

Since MADD was founded in 1980, more than 300,000 lives have been saved as a result of efforts to strengthen drunk driving laws and raise awareness about this 100 percent preventable crime. In addition, since MADD’s Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving was launched in 2006, we’ve seen an almost 27 percent decrease in drunk driving fatalities.

While we have much to celebrate today, we are also reminded of the 9,878 precious lives lost to drunk driving last year and the countless loved ones left behind to pick up the pieces. In addition, we know that preliminary numbers indicate an overall increase for highway deaths in 2012, so please help MADD remind people across the country to remain vigilant in always planning ahead for a sober designated driver during the holidays and year-round.

Click here to see the 2011 state by state fatality data.

Tie One On For Safety® This Holiday Season
By MADD | December 6, 2012 | Filed in: Drunk Driving

One of the most dangerous times of the year on our nation’s roadways is between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day. That’s why every holiday season, MADD asks drivers to display a MADD Tie One On For Safety red ribbon on their vehicle as a reminder to drive safe, sober and buckled up.

Started in 1986, Tie One On For Safety is MADD’s longest running and most visible public awareness project. The phrase, “tie one on,” is sometimes used as slang for drinking, but at MADD, we use the phrase to remind everyone that drinking and driving don’t mix.

This holiday season, show your commitment to driving safe and sober by displaying a MADD red ribbon on your vehicle. Red ribbons, magnets and window decals (donated by SmartSign) are available through local MADD affiliates.

Or you can Tie One On For Safety “virtually” by sharing a TOOFS button on Facebook and other online social networks. Click on one of the buttons below to share them.

Special thanks to Nationwide Insurance for sponsoring this year’s Tie One On For Safety efforts.

Why We’re Here: Micheal Reinhardt
By MADD | December 5, 2012 | Filed in: Victim Stories

Micheal Anthony Reinhardt (Mike, for short) was a good kid, an honor student and was always happy.  He loved to play video games and spend time with his family and friends.  Mike was looking forward to graduating high school in 2000 and wanted to attend USF in Tampa, because he didn’t want to go too far from home.

Thursday, December 24, 1998 — Christmas Eve — Mike, age 16, was riding in a car with friends on their way to play pool.  One minute they were talking about going roller blading, and the next they were rear-ended by a drunk driver who had just been kicked out of a bar.  The driver, with a BAC of .18, was traveling at 70 MPH and the impact killed Mike instantly; no one else was injured.

Mike’s mother, Darlene Carothers, believed Mike was out of the country with his father at the time of the crash, so when police officers came to her door the next day, she thought it was a mistake.  But it wasn’t a mistake.  Mike was back in town and had been staying with friends. 

After the crash, Darlene was put in contact with MADD.  She says, “MADD was there for me every step of the way, through court hearings and with lots of hugs every time I cried.”  After two years of court, the drunk driver was sentenced to 17 years in prison.  Darlene says, “It won’t bring my son back, but it will keep another drunk driver off the streets.”

Darlene received the news on Christmas day that her son had been killed — a day she will never forget.  Since Mike’s death, she hasn’t been able to put up a tree or celebrate Christmas.

Please remember Mike, and all of the victims of drunk driving, as you celebrate this holiday season, and help us spread the word that drinking and driving don’t mix by participating in Tie One On For Safety®.

Visit Mike’s tribute page to read more, see more photos or make a donation in his honor.