Let me start off by saying, by no means do I think his arrest should end up in jail time however that does not mean I don’t want him to be punished. Drunk driving isn’t a mistake, it’s a choice. And here’s why…. According to DUI Prevention, about 32% of all traffic fatalities in the United States that involve drunk driving are with a BAC of .08 or higher. Unfortunately, we will never know what Justin’s BAC was because he refused the chemical test 3 times according to the spokesperson for the Sag Harbor Police Department.
Penalties for refusing a test in NY state are up to a possible 6 month license suspension and a fine between $500-$1000, according to the New York Department of Motor Vehicles.
What exactly is a chemical test?
Chemical tests use blood, breath, urine or saliva to measure the BAC of a person. If you are arrested for an alcohol or drug-related violation, the police officer will likely request that you submit to a chemical test. Under New York’s “Implied Consent” law, when you drive a car in this state you are considered to have already given your consent to take this type of test.
Chemical test refusal is a separate issue from whether you were guilty of an alcohol or drug-related violation. If you refuse to take the test after being arrested, your driver license will be suspended when you are arraigned in court on the alcohol or other drug-related charge. In addition, the fact that you refused a chemical test can be brought up in court when you are tried on the alcohol or drug-related charge. If a DMV hearing later confirms you refused the test, your driver license will be revoked even if you are found not guilty of the alcohol or other drug-related violation.
Let’s get back to some more statistics.. between 2013-2022, approximately 11,000 people died every year in drunk driving related crashes, that’s ONE person every 39 minutes!
Why am I throwing out all these statistics at you? Because these are preventable deaths that seem to keep happening. They are ripping families apart all across the United States. Just look at some of these families that have been affected by these senseless deaths.
In 2006, Jessica Rasdall & her best friend Laura Gorman both 18 yrs old at the time, went out for a night of clubbing that included drinking. Jessica decided to drive home that night, only 1 person made it back alive. To read more about this night, read the ABC News story.
In 2016, another victim, Michelle Ramsey Hawkins suffered the unthinkable, the loss of her two sons due to 2 different drunk drivers on the road that fateful night. After hitting a trash compactor that had fallen off a pickup truck by a drunk driver, Michelle got her family off to the side of the road waiting for police to arrive, little did she know that only a few minutes later, her family would tragically be changed forever by another drunk driver ignoring the safety cones set along side of the road.. Read more of Michelle’s story at Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
But let’s go even deeper, in my state of Rhode Island, approximately 3000 drivers are arrested for driving under the influence each year according to the Department of Transportation of RI.
In 2022, nearly 70% of the arrested individuals refused to submit to chemical testing according to RI DOT Safety. And do you know why refusals are so high, because people know if they hire a good lawyer, they’ll be back out on the road. Because RI is full of DUI lawyers, who will find any loophole on that police report, get it down to nothing and the most you’ll be paying is your $500 fine and released. But this isn’t happening in just RI, it is happening all over the country..
In this story, originally published by The Boston Globe, it chronicles the long history of how repeat drunk drivers are consistently getting off with no real consequences who really should have had their licenses suspended thus letting them back out on the road.. StreetBlog Report..
In this 2020 documentary short, Blind Spot, an 11 month investigation into how the Massachusetts Registry has failed to protect drivers & have also neglected dangerous offenders, it really exposes how states lack of responsibility to enforce laws are preventing these dangerous drivers back out on the road.
Now let’s get back to Justin Timberlake…. What I hope that will happen to him is an automatic 6 month suspension of his driver’s license and the maximum fine. After this story broke, social media was generally favorable of him getting arrested and was hoping he would be treated like everyone else.
Reactions from Instagram varied from disparaging to no big deal.
What I wish would happen, is that all states make it mandatory for first time offenders to install Ignition Interlocks. This is a device that requires the driver to blow into a breathalyzer to measure their blood alcohol concentration (BAC) before allowing the vehicle to start. Currently, 31 states and the District of Columbia have laws requiring all offenders, including first-time offenders, to install an IID. An additional eight states—Florida, Michigan, Minnesota, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Wisconsin and Wyoming—require high BAC offenders—trigger levels range between .1 and .17—and repeat offenders to install IIDs. Five states—Georgia, Ohio, Massachusetts, Maine and Missouri—require only repeat offenders to install the devices. The remaining six states—California, Indiana, Nevada, North Dakota, Montana and South Dakota— do not have any statewide requirements regarding IIDs, but judges have the discretion to order offenders to install one if they consider it necessary. This info was taken from National Conference of State Legislatures.
Rhode Island is the smallest state in the country so when a tragedy happens, especially to younger people, our small community tends to rally around victims & their families, lending support, donations, fundraisers, any type of support that family might need. These tragedies that could’ve been prevented are now being used to get harsher penalties for accused drunk drivers.
Take Kristine Bouthillier of West Warwick. Her son was injured in a drunk driving crash & while he survived, his best friend, Matthew Dennison, was killed. Teenagers just driving to a hockey game on a fateful evening in February 2022. She is now advocating, along with other parents whose children have died by impaired drivers, for stricter laws. Right now, Rhode Island has the shortest period of looking back at prior offenses in New England. For example, a driver gets arrested for a DWI today but six years prior, they were also arrested for the same offense, the law prevents the officers from charging the accused with a second offense. Laws don’t need to just change in Rhode Island, this needs to be nationwide.
Two days ago, one of my best friend’s texted on a group text how sad she was because a good friend of hers was killed by a drunk driver. She was riding her bicycle down the long stretch of Rte 1A in North Kingstown, which boasts a very wide bike/breakdown lane. The accused is a retired Providence police officer, released on $20,000 surety bail, meaning he only paid $2000. This happened at 6:57pm on Tuesday, June 20, 2024. He made a choice.
I’m going to tell you a story as I remember it.. the pieces may not all be correct but this is the story I remember being told…. On December 5, 1952, my grandmother & her friend were walking up to St Alexander Catholic Church on Main Street in Warren, RI. It was rainy, they were wearing dark clothes & maybe carrying an umbrella, I am not sure about that. A car was speeding down the narrow street, I’m not sure how fast, but it happened so quick.. my grandmother and her friend were hit, I believe my grandmother’s body may have landed on the church lawn but her friend was being dragged until he finally stopped. The story was this man that ran them down had been at some sort of party, like an engagement party, had a few drinks, I don’t even think he was arrested, he knew people on the police force. He was never charged, it was rainy, so I guess that was the reason for the accident. It was 1952, not sure how car accident offenses were penalized back then, was he drunk? I don’t know, in my mind I believe he was. My grandmother died that day, it changed my mom’s life forever. She was nine years old.
Please do not make this choice, it could be the very last one you make or you might regret it for the rest of your life.
Music To Your Ears 