Drive safe, sober this holiday weekend
Tuesday was a good news/bad news day in the fight against drunken driving in Illinois.
On the positive side, Secretary of State Jesse White provided statistics showing Illinois drivers are getting safer on the roads on Labor Day weekend. The timing, of course, comes as we face the traditional end-of-summer three-day holiday that in the past has been an excuse to drink and drive.
“Illinois drivers have made a substantial improvement the past three Labor Day weekends in regards to safe driving,” White said in a prepared release. “Alcohol-related fatalities have decreased by almost 50 percent over that time frame. My hope is that our drivers continue that trend until there are no deaths on our roads.”
Unfortunately, that leads us to the bad news part of the day. On our front page and on our website Tuesday we told you the tragic story of two Rolling Meadows women — ages 72 and 92 — killed when their car was hit head-on Sunday night by another car driven by 25-year-old Joseph Slattery of Mokena. He was charged with six counts of aggravated driving under the influence and one count of driving under the influence. A third passenger in the victims' car was seriously injured while two passengers in Slattery's car, including a 1-year-old boy, were treated for minor injuries and released as was Slattery.
Also in Tuesday's Daily Herald was the story of a 43-year-old Mount Prospect man with three prior DUI convictions who now has been charged a fourth time. He had a blood alcohol content of .214, authorities said, when he was stopped by Mount Prospect police going 60 mph in a 40 mph zone at about 5 p.m. Saturday. The legal blood-alcohol limit is .08.
We also had the story of a 21-year-old North Barrington woman charged with DUI after her car struck a railroad crossing pole in Barrington. The accident happened at 8:30 a.m.
It all adds up to the fact that while statistics may show DUI crashes are down for Labor Day, continued enforcement, monitoring and awareness is needed as the battle against drunken driving continues. Habitual offenders, especially, need to be removed from the roads.
Sadly, even our own legislators, who have approved the laws to make it tougher on those who would drink and drive, are not immune.
State Rep. Randy Ramey of Carol Stream, who also serves as the DuPage County Republican chairman, was charged Sunday with driving under the influence of alcohol, having registered a blood-alcohol level of .17.
“I regret and take full responsibility for my actions, and I am prepared to face the consequences,” Ramey said. Luckily, for him, the consequences are his alone.
Please be careful this holiday weekend.
“If you are drinking, stay where you are or designate a sober driver,” White said. Sound advice.