For Immediate Release April 27, 2009
Contact: Corey Welford/Jessica Venezia 781-897-8325
DA Leone Urges Students To Be Safe, Make Good Decisions During Prom And Graduation Season
WOBURN– With car crashes ranking as the number one killer of high school-aged students, Middlesex District Attorney Gerry Leone today urged more than 600 students at Reading Memorial High School to make good decisions about teenage impaired driving during prom and graduation season.
Each year, Leone addresses students in high schools throughout Middlesex County about the dangers of impaired driving.
“Each year at this time, we deal with a tragedy because a young person made a bad decision to get behind the wheel while impaired,” District Attorney Leone said in his remarks to the students. “Each and every one of those tragedies were preventable. Your families and all of us here care about you – we urge you to look out for one another and make smart decisions not to get behind the wheel while impaired.”
Statistics show that car crashes are the leading cause of death for young adults between the ages of 15-20 and that there is a dramatic increase in alcohol-related traffic fatalities on prom weekends. According to the 2005 Massachusetts Youth Risk Behavior Survey, 28% of Massachusetts youth surveyed reported riding with a driver who had been drinking and 12% reported that they themselves had driven after they had been drinking. Nationally, 73% of 12th graders surveyed stated that they have tried alcohol, according to a recent survey put out by the National Institutes of Health and Drug Abuse.
In collaboration with Middlesex County school superintendents, Leone also has reached out to parents about this issue in an effort to help parents protect their children.
A joint letter which was distributed to parents of 12th graders in Middlesex County outlines the troubling statistics regarding teenage drinking and driving and offers parents a number of proactive steps that they can take to help prevent their children and others from getting behind the wheel while impaired.
“You, as a parent or guardian, are in a pivotal position to help ensure the safety of your children by educating them on the reality of alcohol-related tragedies,” the joint letter states. “By helping them make the right choices around impaired driving, you could not only save the lives of your children, but of others as well. These tragedies are purely preventable, and you, along with proactive education and tough law enforcement, can help shape your child’s decision on whether or not to engage in risky behavior.”
The letter also offers alternatives to parents and teens during this prom season:
If you are able to, hire professional transportation for your children’s prom night. Make sure you have a discussion with the driver prior to prom night about your expectations that the ride be alcohol-free. Sometimes these drivers will agree to purchase alcohol for their minor passengers; it is important to ensure that this will not happen by talking directly with the driver
Offer your children transportation alternatives. Offer to provide your children rides or to have an older sibling or family friend provide rides for your children on prom night. If your child does not want you to pick them up, oftentimes a sibling or family friend is a great compromise.
Provide your child with the phone number of a local taxi company with a positive reputation and make plans to pay for your children’s taxi fare for the night. Remember, this is a small cost to keep your child safe.
Make sure to exchange cell phone numbers so that your child can reach you in a moment’s notice.
In the letter, D.A. Leone and the superintendents also remind parents that they can be held liable if they choose to host a party for teens where alcohol is served and then have one of their guests harm themselves or others by the negligent operation of a motor vehicle due to alcohol consumption.
(A copy of the joint letter being distributed by Superintendents to parents in their individual communities is included below.)
###
April, 2009
Dear Parent/Guardian:
It’s that time of year again, as the next few months will be filled with graduations, proms and other celebratory events for our children. In anticipation, I write to urge you to do all that you can to make it a happy and safe time for your child.
Each year, we lose far too many of our teenagers to motor vehicle crashes, with a dramatic increase in alcohol-related traffic fatalities on prom weekends throughout our county. Car crashes are the leading cause of death for young adults between the ages of 15-20, and the reality is that many of those deaths are caused by teenage impaired driving.
You, as a parent or guardian, are in a pivotal position to ensure the safety of your children by educating them on the reality of alcohol-related tragedies. By helping them make the right choices around impaired driving, you could not only save the lives of your children, but of others as well. These tragedies are purely preventable, and you, along with proactive education and tough law enforcement, can help shape your child’s decision on whether or not to engage in risky behavior.
It’s also important to remind parents and guardians that it is a crime to provide alcohol to those under the age of 21, even at a supervised party at your own home. It is also important to know that if you choose to host a party where alcohol is served to minors, you can be held liable if one of your guests drinks alcohol at your home and harms themselves or others by the negligent operation of a motor vehicle.
Finally, please remember to stress to your children that driving after drinking any amount of alcohol could potentially result in a driving under the influence offense. For those under the age of 21, driving under the influence in Massachusetts is defined by a 0.02 blood alcohol level. This level can easily be reached by just one drink and carries the very serious criminal penalties of an OUI offense, possibly marring your child’s chance at getting into college, applying for jobs and even participating in graduation.
We know this topic is difficult and that’s why we’ve provided you with ideas for safe alternatives, in order to ensure everyone’s safety during this celebratory season:
If you are able to, hire professional transportation for your children’s prom night. Make sure you have a discussion with the driver prior to prom night about your expectations that the ride be alcohol-free. Sometimes these drivers will agree to purchase alcohol for their minor passengers; it is important to ensure that this will not happen by talking directly with the driver
Offer your children transportation alternatives. Offer to provide your children rides or to have an older sibling or family friend provide rides for your children on prom night. If your child does not want you to pick them up, oftentimes a sibling or family friend is a great compromise.
Provide your child with the phone number of a local taxi company with a positive reputation and make plans to pay for your children’s taxi fare for the night. Remember, this is a small cost to keep your child safe.
Make sure to exchange cell phone numbers so that your child can reach you in a moment’s notice.
We have seen first-hand the devastating impact that impaired driving under the influence can have on parents, families, friends and communities, and urge you to be proactive in preventing teenage drinking and driving. We believe these alternatives will help to discourage impaired driving without infringing on your child’s desire for fun and independence.
Thank you and please contact us with any questions that you may have, or if you would like further information on teenage impaired driving.
Please be safe and enjoy this wonderful time of year.
Sincerely,
Gerry Leone
Middlesex District Attorney Superintendent