Drunk Driving in Marshall County

So how bad is “Drunk Driving” in Marshall County? We all know drunk driving is a serious concern all over the United States and I think most people around here know of someone or some family that has dealt with this particular issue. You can find drunk driving reports on most local nightly newscast and the newspaper can’t be read without seeing a DUI related story. But how bad has “Drunk Driving” become in Marshall County? Well if you’ve been watching those same local newscasts; you know where I’m headed with this.

Your typical alcohol related motor vehicle incident usually involves the intoxicated driver either falling asleep behind the wheel, crashing into parked cars or in the scariest of situations, hitting a pedestrian or another vehicle carrying passengers. Marshall County’s problem goes beyond that. Our unlawful drivers have gone from hitting cars and people…to crashing into homes. And we’re not talking about an accident where a few pieces of siding fall off the house. We’re talking about a vehicle coming to rest in between a love seat and recliner. Imagine if you are a person who stays home on Friday and Saturday nights to avoid the whole drinking scene or you are a parent who tries to keep your family home during the evening hours for fear of what other drivers are capable of. All of the fear and trepidation that you have felt becomes a sudden reality as a careless drunk driver crashes into your home.

Now if this were a type of accident that occurred once every 76 years like Halley’s Comet, I would probably file it in the “ridiculous incident involving drunk driving” drawer. The fact is that within a 3 day span, Marshall County had 2 homes driven into by drunk drivers. These incidents are indicative of how serious drinking and driving is within our county and the high frequency in which people are operating vehicles with alcohol in their systems. If you are still undecided on whether or not you consider drunk driving to be a major concern for our area, here are a few statistical categories Marshall County ranks at the top of in our state: Youth DUI arrest rate, adult arrest rate, percent of motor vehicle crashes that are alcohol related and percent of fatal motor vehicle crashes that are alcohol related.

To aid in raising awareness for this growing concern in our community, next week valley residents will begin noticing billboards that address this issue of drunk driving. While the matter of why people continue to drink and drive remains uncertain, the message displayed on the billboards is quite clear: “All that separates you and a drunk driver is a thin, yellow line.” The statement is intended to remind all of us of the disturbing reality we find ourselves facing when traveling on the same roads as those who choose to drink and drive. The message has become even more important in recent weeks for Marshall County because of the concerns that extend from the roads, and into our homes.

If you share the same concerns that many of your neighbors and fellow community members have, now is the time to voice your opinion and help generate awareness of this issue. Help others realize the effects drunk drivers have on our society. Remind your family and friends of the dangers drunk driving presents for all of us. These individuals remove our sense of confidence in that we can safely protect our families. They become that unknown variable on the road that we are all concerned about and all too often, their actions determine the futures of so many. For information on how you can get involved, contact the Marshall County Anti-Drug Coalition @ 304-845-3300 or log on to: marshallcountyantidrugcoalition.blogspot.com. You can be the difference this community needs. Stand up and make the statement that “all that separates us from a drunk driver is….You!”

2008 Pride Survey Results

2008 Pride Survey reveals Interesting details on issues affecting our youth

Moundsville, WV – February 25, 2009: Last Year, the Marshall County Family Resource Network, Marshall County Schools and the Marshall County Anti-Drug Coalition collaborated to administer a survey to students in 6th-12th grades. The “PRIDE” survey, which was funded through the Strategic Prevention Framework State's Incentive Grant, was used to acquire data on many issues facing youth today. All students in grades 6th-12th were eligible to participate as long as parental consent and student assent forms were signed and returned to the staff. In total, 515 students participated in the 2008 Pride survey. Here are some of the statistics obtained from the survey regarding Alcohol, Tobacco and Marijuana use.

Statistics from 6th-8th Graders

-The age that these students reported first use of tobacco and alcohol is 11
-The age that these students reported first use of marijuana is 12
-8.5% report using tobacco within the last year
-18.3% report using alcohol within the last year
-3.1% report using marijuana within the last year
-34% of reported drug users indicated that their parents seldom or never discuss the dangers of drugs

Statistics from 9th-12th Graders

-The age that these students reported first use of tobacco and alcohol is 13
-The age that these students reported first use of marijuana is 14
-29.4% report using tobacco within the last year
-42.7% report using alcohol within the last year
-15.6% report using marijuana within the last year
-34% of reported drug users indicated that their parents seldom or never discuss the dangers of drugs

For more information on the Marshall County Anti-Drug Coalition and its effort to reduce substance abuse among Marshall County youth, please call (304) 845-3300 or log on to marshallcountyantidrugcoalition.blogspot.com.

Drink One for Chaz...Are You Kidding Me?

Today February 10th, 2009, marks the one year anniversary of the sudden and tragic death of Chaz Lightner from Moundsville, WV. The incident was a horrific reminder for Marshall County and the surrounding communities, of the potential dangers that could result from underage drinking. From TV and radio to newspapers and the internet, reporting on this tragedy was extensive. One year later, evidence of the media coverage and the initial response from a distraught community can still be found online. While searching for information for this blog, I became overwhelmed by the sum of websites dedicated to Chaz and the amount of content contained on those pages. I will say that after visiting many different sites and after reading hundreds of comments and viewing even more pictures, I thought I would feel better about the lessons our society should have learned from this. Don’t get me wrong, I do believe that this tragedy has focused a light on the dark topic of underage drinking within our community. The concerns I have deal more with how some teens chose to honor his life and what their reaction indicates about the direction our community could be headed in.

This is what frustrates so many about this situation. Here you have a young man getting ready to begin his life. He has college, marriage, kids, professional career….his entire future knocking at his door. Tragically, his life is then cut short by participating in something that is completely avoidable. He didn’t have a life threatening illness and he wasn’t critically injured in a highway accident….he died because he drank too much! This can’t be anything less than a wake-up call for everyone. If anything should change the minds of teens and parents in this area, it should be the death of someone that is so young and loved by so many.

It is completely understandable that if a person passes away, some friends may want to honor their memory. Whether it’s a video celebrating this person’s life or a collection of stories and pictures shared by loved ones and friends, honoring someone’s memory is a thoughtful and expected practice. What isn’t expected is when a young teen dies from drinking too much alcohol and some of his friends choose to honor his memory by wearing shirts that say…..“Drink One for Chaz!” Expected, no. Dumb, yes! When I heard of this I couldn’t believe it. These shirts were actually produced and worn…outside…at community events like the Italian Festival. When a close friend dies from drinking too much alcohol and friends want to glorify his tragic demise by encouraging other underage kids to have a drink in his memory, things are looking pretty bad for us. Here’s something else…How is it that even after Chaz’s death, some classmates and friends are still flaunting their drinking on their MySpace pages? The legal drinking age is 21….right? After seeing how a tragedy like this can damage so many lives, it can’t really be worth it. You would think that his death would cause a conscious effort throughout the community to actually change what is going on in the Ohio Valley. I’ve seen the websites and read the comments. It’s obvious that many people loved Chaz but also really believed things would change for this area after this incident. As many people as there are that say they are against underage drinking, there are just as many who not only condone it but accept it as a part of life. These are the feelings shared by many local families who view underage drinking as generational, as something that has been accepted and tolerated for as long as they can remember.

Here’s another one for you…How many times have you heard Marshall County’s name attached to underage drinking? Whether you are from here or not, you are aware of the stigma that that has always been associated with this area. Even during my childhood years, I was taught the 2 most important things you need to know about Marshall County: 1) When old enough to drive, never speed through Benwood and 2) the legal drinking age in Marshall County is birth. The 2nd obviously isn’t true but goes to show that for many years, underage drinking has been linked with this county. Many people believe that if parents didn’t provide it for their kids or didn’t have it in the home, teens wouldn’t be able to gain access to alcohol. Although this would help some, the truth is that teens don’t need anyone to get them alcohol, they can buy it themselves. Last March, a month after Chaz’s death, the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department began undercover compliance checks with local retailers. Amazingly, 45 out of 48 clerks sold alcohol to minors. So if your child wants to drink, they’re drinking. The emphasis has to be applied to changing the mindset of everyone and instill that it’s not okay to have alcohol before the age of 21.

Through all the reading and talking with people familiar with this situation, I still wonder if much has truly changed. Kids are still getting arrested for DUI’s and I read about public intoxication incidents happening all the time. Not to mention that many parents are still allowing their kids to have parties and think by taking their keys, everything will be fine. Have we not learned from this? I understand that some parents feel that they have and have since stopped parties from happening or refused to purchase alcohol for their kids. But when you walk into your living room and see your child and their friends drinking, do you take action and end the party because you know the dangers involved with underage drinking or are you stopping the party because you are worried about the liability side of things? It’s a fair question. Are you more concerned with being sued than you are with the safety of our children? I’ve read so many comments proclaiming that “parents and teens were going to learn from this and change.” Change what? If you only change the way you handle underage drinking because you fear being sued, is that really the change our area needs? The community has to decide that generational underage drinking is a problem and needs to stop. We can’t wait for our kids to take a stand. We need to take a stand and become the catalyst of change for future generations of families in Marshall County.

The Marshall County Anti-Drug Coalition page was created to educate and inform as well as provide a positive public forum where issues concerning our community and surrounding communities can be discussed. Use this opportunity to discuss your opinions and views on how to make this area better with people from all over the Ohio Valley. Chaz Lightner’s life should be celebrated and his death should provide us with the motivation to do whatever it takes to prevent something like this from happening again. I ask that you don’t wait for change to happen. Take the initiative and make change happen for you and your community.

45 out of 48 Marshall County Merchants Allow Teens to Purchase Alcohol: Where do we go from here?

Many parents think they have a good understanding of how their kids spend their time. Whether it’s going over their friend’s house to hangout, playing various sports or staying after school to study, a parent trust that their child is doing what they have taught them to do…the right thing. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case with many kids today. Recent studies have indicated that youth in Marshall County are beginning to drink alcohol at very early ages, some as early as 10 years old. Equally alarming; 32% of teens drink alcohol monthly. So the question then becomes, how do the kids in our community get their hands on alcohol? It’s quite simple, they can find it in their home, get it from their friends or they just walk right into a store and buy it.

Last year, the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department conducted “compliance checks” with 48 local merchants. At each location, an underage inspector was sent in to purchase various alcoholic beverages. After they had selected their products, they were to then proceed to the checkout area. If asked for I.D., they would show their license which clearly stated that they were underage. If the store clerk processed the sale, their store would fail the compliance check. Disturbingly, out of the 48 retailers targeted by the compliance checks, 45 sold to minors. That is a 94% sale rate in Marshall County! In most cases, the store associate never asked for identification and even when the question was asked, they either ignored the fact that the inspector was underage or they entered in their own birth date to process the sale. The 45 businesses at fault were given a ticket and could either pay the fine or attend a retailer education program called TIPS (Training for Intervention ProcedureS) which has been proven successful in the training of severs and sellers of alcohol on responsible beverage sales practices.

Understanding the problems this issue presented for the community and armed with the information from the 2008 Compliance Check operation, The Marshall County Family Resource Network applied for and was recently awarded the Purdue Pharma Asset Forfeiture Funds Grant. The grant funds increased the Compliance Checks as well as provide the necessary TIPS training to retailers. It also helps the Marshall County FRN and Sheriff’s Department work toward the ultimate goal of driving down underage alcohol sales through education and enforcement. For further information on the TIPS training program, visit http://www.gettips.com/ and for future updates on the 2009 Compliance Checks for Marshall County, subscribe to our blog or visit http://www.marshallcountyfrn.com/.