Critics Say District's DUI Policy Goes Too Far

Washington Post ^ | 10/13/05 | Brigid Schulte

[elkfersupper]

Officials with organizations that lobby for safe roads and tough drunken driving laws yesterday criticized the District's zero-tolerance policy toward drinking and driving, saying that they'd never heard of it and that limited police resources should be devoted to those more obviously drunk. Even D.C. Council member Carol Schwartz (R-At Large), who has sponsored legislation to lower the legal limit for drunken driving, said she was not aware that police officers are arresting drivers who have as little as .01 percent blood alcohol content -- less than from drinking a glass of wine or beer -- in their systems. Nor did she think that such a policy was a good idea.

[Enterprise]

I think the officers in these cases should be fired. This is disgusting.

[elkfersupper]

I think the officers in these cases should be fired.

That would leave us with 10% of current "Law Enforcement Officers". We can only hope..........

[Wallace T.]

The cops are probably just following orders. No doubt the city manager needs more money to balance the budget, and has a conversation with the police chief. In all likelihood, the city manager never says, "Raise revenues through fines," but gets the message across indirectly. In turn, the police chief never tells the beat cops to write more tickets, but tells them of the need for more aggressive enforcement of safety laws. In this game, everyone in the municipal bureaucracy gets the message, and the citizens are screwed.

I have noticed for years that in the weeks before municipal elections, traffic stops decrease. I don't think public driving habits improve drastically in October and early November (or whenever the election is held).

The restaurant and hospitality business is going to have to step up to the plate to derail MADD and the other alcohol Nazis. If people stop drinking beer, wine, and mixed drinks with their meals and avoid happy hours out of fear of police harassment, the profit margins of restaurants and night clubs will decline and many will fold.