A new Canadian law gives police permission to test drivers for both alcohol and drug use when impaired driving is suspected. The law, titled the Tackling Violent Crime Act, went into effect July 2, 2008.

"The new legislation empowers Canadian police who suspect a driver of being impaired by any drug, illegal, prescription, or over the counter, to conduct a Standardized Field Sobriety Test, a roadside test of physical coordination. If found to be impaired, the driver must submit to a mandatory Drug Evaluation and Classification (DEC) assessment...."

A DEC assessment is an hourlong 12-step process that is conducted by a Drug Recognition Expert. The law also includes new penalties, including a minimum $1,000 fine for the first offense, and no less than 30 days in jail for the second. Source: CNW Group

Labels: canada, drunk_driving, sobriety_test

Students at Pleasant Valley High School in Jacksonville, Alabama, got to experience firsthand the effects of alcohol. A grant from Westinghouse allowed the school to purchase four sets of "fatal vision goggles" which distort vision and simulate the effects of a 0.08 blood alcohol level.

"Students walked the green line of tape, were asked to stand on one foot for 30 seconds, find a nickel among a group of coins on the floor and then, the most difficult part, to pick it up... Most students were amazed by how distorted their vision was..."

The goggles were part of a Drunk Busters program which was held just a few days before prom. The hope was that students would be deterred from drinking and driving during this year's prom celebration. Source: Jacksonville News

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Labels: alcohol, drunk_driving, students

Thanksgiving eve is commonly considered one of the biggest drinking nights of the year. Across the country, police and sheriff's departments will be issuing warnings about the dangers of drinking and driving.

"Much of the drinking tonight will be by college students returning home for the holiday and spending time at bars with friends, officials said during a press conference at the Calhoun County Sheriff's Department in Battle Creek."

Members of the Substance Abuse Council are using today as a platform to warn against underage drinking. Most studies have found that the earlier someone begins to drink, the more likely he or she will struggle with addiction later in life.

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Labels: addiction, drunk_driving, underage_drinking