Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, May 27, 1990 TAG: 9005270063
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND LENGTH: Medium
Raising the legal drinking age from 18 to 21 in the 1980s helped, Wilder said, but surveys show "thousands of teen-agers are still obtaining and using alcohol. And they are drinking it in their cars with predictably tragic results."
Lillian DeVenny of Virginians Opposing Drunk Driving agreed.
"We've reached a certain segment of the population, but the youth, we still need to concentrate on them because of the peer pressure," she said in an interview.
"Education is about the only way we're going to reach them," she said. "I don't think that scare tactics work with them."
Wilder said at a news conference he hopes a new "abuse and lose" law will help curb teen-age drinking. The law requires that teen-agers under age 18 lose their driver's license if they are caught with alcohol or other drugs.
The summer campaign sponsored by the Virginia Alcohol Safety Action program features the "Drive Sober All Over" slogan on posters, litter bags and paper bags handed out by state-run liquor stores.
A television public service announcement shows young people enjoying a day at the beach with a cooler of non-alcoholic drinks.
A pamphlet for boaters warns them of the penalties for operating a boat under the influence of alcohol.
VASAP said drunken driving usually reaches its peak during the summer because students and families are driving on vacations and to outdoor activities. Last summer, 82 fatal crashes were caused by drunken driving, VASAP said.
Almost half, or 480, of all traffic deaths in Virginia last year stemmed from drunken driving, VASAP said. In 1988, 522 traffic deaths were alcohol-related.
Nearly 47,000 people were arrested last year for driving under the influence of alcohol, a 2 percent increase over 1988, VASAP said. About 40,000, or 86 percent, were convicted of DUI.
William T. McCollum, VASAP's executive director, said the number of social drinkers who get behind the wheel apparently has gone down because more of those arrested are people with serious drinking problems.
"We're finally getting our message out to the average citizen. Now what we need to do, what we're doing, is providing education to and treatment to that group of people that we really need to focus on," McCollum said.
by CNB