Butler Law – Drunk And Distracted Driving Awareness In Texas
Over the last several days, the University of Texas of the Permian Basin has seen a buzz of unusual activity at its Odessa Student Activities Center. An exhibit was created for the purpose of instructing students on the hazards attendant to texting behind the wheel and driving under the influence of alcohol. Interactive simulators have been used to illustrate the risk each type of behavior is known to produce. Sponsored and erected by the Save a Life Tour, these simulators are meant to provide young drivers with a strong reminder of the ways in which texting and drunk driving can severely hinder their skills as a motorist, particularly their ability to react swiftly to changing conditions.
Students were able to use the drunk driving simulator that was engineered to gradually escalate the effects of alcohol on driving capacity, incorporating virtual people, streetscapes and weather conditions. These elements are meant to foster alertness and attention among the student participants. When the simulation is over, a staffer from Kramer Entertainment (the designer of the exhibit) will inform the participant about the distance they traveled, the number of curbs with which they collided and the total of errors and legal violations committed over the course of the drive.
The simulator dedicated to the effects of texting while driving provided an opportunity to put driving skills to the test in the midst of a virtual snowstorm with text messages continuously popping in. The idea behind the exhibit was to show precisely how distracting phone use really is for drivers and how much ground is actually traveled during the time it takes to glance at a text message.
Simulators were not the only educational elements involved in the program
as students were also shown videos about drunk driving and the problem of underage alcohol consumption. With any luck, the students participating in the event left with a stronger comprehension of the risks texting while driving and operating under the influence truly pose and a better realization of how they can prevent disaster on the roads. This is a lesson many Texans need to learn. The Lone Star State accounted for the largest number of drunk driving fatalities in 2013, a tally that represented approximately 40 percent of all deaths due to traffic crashes. Roughly one-fifth of all traffic collisions in Texas are now attributable to distracted driving, a rate that is on the rise.
Butler Law Firm Can Help
We are proud of the fact that our lead attorney is among the small number of Houston practitioners focusing entirely on the defense of DWI cases. With over 23 years of experience in this realm, Jim Butler has assisted hundreds of Texans in their fight against fail sentences and costly monetary fines. Certified in field sobriety test instruction, he has a firm grasp of the latest technology and techniques necessary for evaluating drunk driving charges. According to Jim, drunk driving laws are important and deserve to be enforced, but that there are many times when innocent parties are unfairly arrested and/or accused of violating them.
Jim reminds everyone that in Texas, it is legal for adults to consume alcohol and subsequently operate a vehicle, provided that they do not lose the faculties necessary to drive safely. Unfortunately, he says, the majority of field sobriety testing methods simply do not assess all of the relevant factors needed to make such a determination, including fatigue, medical conditions and the like. As such, drivers are at risk of failing such a test when they are not actually intoxicated.
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