Drunk Driving and Drugged Driving

To begin with, how do law enforcers determine if drivers are driving over the legal limit here? How many cities and municipalities equip their traffic enforcers with breathalyzers, for instance?

In a country where the most popular Filipino athlete endorses its most popular beer, the drunk-driving offense of Mel Gibson seems less controversial than his vitriolic, anti-Semitic outburst at law-enforcement officials who accosted him.

But the United States government takes drunk driving very seriously. Gibson is, in fact, facing criminal charges for driving under the influence of alcohol and having an open container of liquor in his car.

Driving under the influence (DUI) or driving while intoxicated (DWI) is considered a crime in every state in the US. Just to clarify though, driving after consuming alcohol is not necessarily illegal unless the person’s ability to drive is impaired, as defined by law. Driving while having an open container of liquor inside the vehicle is, however, an outright violation in certain jurisdictions, obviously in Malibu, where Gibson was arrested.

Gibson was caught speeding, and so, regardless of whether there was an open container of liquor in his car or not, he had to be tested as mandated by US laws. In the US, if the police see you driving erratically or violating traffic laws, they can automatically submit you to various tests, which determine the amount of alcohol in your blood. A blood-alcohol test by means of a "breathalyzer" and/or urine sample is expressed in terms of milligrams of alcohol per milliliters of blood, or as a percentage. (10 mg/100 ml = 0.01 g/100 g = 0.01%). I think most, if not all, US states have an illegal limit of .08%. I believe Gibson was determined to have .12 percent of alcohol in his blood.

Here in the Philippines, there are also drunk-driving ordinances in most cities, with penalties that include fines, suspension of one’s driving license and jail terms. But, as we all know, enforcement is not as strict as it is in the US.

To begin with, how do law enforcers determine if drivers are driving over the legal limit here? How many cities and municipalities equip their traffic enforcers with breathalyzers, for instance? Are they capable of conducting blood tests to determine if the driver is over the statutory amount? Or do they just rely on smelling drivers, judging their conduct, language (slurred speech, e.g.) and motor movements to determine if they are indeed drunk?

Foreigners I have talked to often make comments that drunk-driving laws here are a joke. It’s also a culture thing, they say. Filipinos take pride in being able to hold their liquor. They say it seems to be a macho thing for most Filipino males to be able to drink and drive, mocking the popular admonition, "Don’t drink and drive."

Technically, there’s not even a national law against drunk driving. If I recall correctly, Senate President Manny Villar introduced a bill for the purpose when he was still chairman of the Senate finance committee. Under his bill, Villar proposed that persons found guilty for the first time of drunk driving must face a suspension of their driver’s license for one year and be made to pay a fine of P1,000. On the second offense, a fine of P5,000 and a five-year suspension of the driver’s license will be imposed. I don’t recall the bill having gone past the committee level though.

In Makati, Jejomar Binay wants to be stricter not only against drunk driving but also "drugged driving." Last year the Makati City Council passed an ordinance imposing a fine of P2,500 or imprisonment—or both—on persons who drive their vehicles while under the influence of drugs or liquor.

The city government acquired testing kits to be used in checking the blood-alcohol level of intoxicated or drugged drivers. Suspected drivers can also be taken to the Ospital ng Makati, which now conducts testing on a 24-hour basis. So Makati traffic officers don’t need to rely only on physical manifestations of being intoxicated or drugged, which might not be able to hold up in court when cases are filed against those caught red-handed. Just like in the US, the testing is mandatory if you are caught violating traffic or driving errantly.

In Makati, drivers who register a .13-percent blood alcohol level are considered unfit to drive and will be charged according to the drunk-driving ordinance. Interestingly, Gibson would not have been legally drunk in Makati. (Maybe, Filipinos really have a high tolerance for alcohol, otherwise how do you explain the more lenient standards for blood alcohol tests?)

Has the city ordinance encouraged more people in Makati to drink moderately and more responsibly? Obviously, it hasn’t put a stop to drunk driving altogether. That might be an impossible task. But even making a dent on the drunk-driving culture would take time, relentless enforcement coupled with a serious information drive.

Binay directed the Makati Police Department, the city’s Department of Public Safety and the barangays to strictly enforce the ordinance, particularly in the vicinity of Makati’s bars and entertainment establishments. Bar owners were asked to inform their clients about the ordinance against drunk driving, and its corresponding penalties.

Apparently, the advisories failed to reach former Pangasinan congressman Ranjit Shahani, who figured in a car accident in Makati last week. Ranjit was allegedly drunk when he rammed another car head-on. Worse, he could only present an expired student’s license (way back in 1992) to the responding officers.

This, along with many other similar incidents, only highlights the need for a strongly enforced drunk-driving law that would lead to fewer alcohol-related accidents and fatalities.

Source: http://www.abs-cbnnews.com

Posted Friday, March 23, 2007
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