Should the police pursue a zero tolerance policy towards drink driving?

oldnavybuddy1488

I think all cars should have a sensor you have to blow in to start the car.

julie t

yes yes yes and once again yes i cannot agree with you more i drive and do not ever drink it is ridiculous that this is not in force in every country drinking and driving is stupid and has to be stamped out now

st.abbs

Yes there should be no exceptions, you should be banned for life, if you get caught driving after the ban there should be a mandatory sentence of 5 years rising by 5 years every time you are caught

CLIVE H

Yes the police must persue a zero tolerance policy towards drink driving and not, as they are doing now, just during the run up to Christmas and New Year.

When you've got less than a split second to slam on the brakes when a child runs out in front of you a drunk driver is not going to even try his brakes and has been proven time and time again, they nearly always hit and run.

Stop and blow should be the policy.

Michael F

Ah Hemm, beg to differ on that one mate/matette, was arrested from the house for DD and i hadn't been, but still lost my licence for 18 months. . . Merry Xmas do gooders

Oh by the way, i used to do on average 80k miles a year. . so i never ever did the DD thing . . . Grrrr Justice, UK don't mention them in the same breath

Ally

I couldn't agree with you more. If I ever have one glass of wine at lunchtime (without driving afterwards), I can really feel the effect. If I was then to drive home, I would be within the limit, but my judgement would definitely be impaired. A zero alcohol limit is the only option. When you have to do a mathematical calculation to see if you can drive, you shouldn't be doing it.

Adze

Yes yes yes Ex banned drink driver.

cork

Its not police power to pursue such.
Its law makers and courts- not individuals authority.

without court power -thousand arrest means a thousand walks.

you won't get aero alcohol limits.. so more reasonable limits
(took long time to get .08) would be get down to .06.
But strict enforcement and punishment -repeat offenders is the major problems.
one time offender who stops - ok
but 7 or 8 or 10 or 12 or more times dui/dwi judges need to be held accoutable--sued in civl acourt for letting--lethal weapons back on streets to kill and main.

topdog

a total zero on alcohol would not be realistic. this is because some foods and medicines have alcohol bases etc. but it should be lowered to below the level of a unit of alcohol to prevent drink driving. also the government can remove the vat on alcohol free drinks and encourage more pubs etc to promote these. also the brewers should work on an alcohol free drink at the pumps instead of just bottles.

3 para

yes.. even one small drink should be banned....all road users know you cant drink and drive,the fools that do should be banned for a minimum of 10 years.
why drive when you know you will be drinking?
take a cab or a bus and drink as much as you want.
the govrment should adhere to the families that have lost a loved one due to drink drivers...

There is a Zero tolerance Policy to people driving over the legal limit....and the Police enforce that where they can. If someone is stopped over the legal limit, they are arrested and taken to court. That is where the problem is....the court system.
Question is....what do you do?? If there was stiffer disqualifications and fines, would that stop people? The answer is no. People who depend on driving for a living are caught day in day out drink driving.
A good idea would be random breath testing. Where the police can just stop and test for alcohol without grounds. Another would be evidential road side tests, without having to take them back to the Police station....at least 3 hours off the ground...or the ability to take them to court the following morning with the evidence there. That would soon wise up a few of them!

lori

Yes. They totally should. Most people might think they are in control after a drink or so, but their reactions are impaired. They are still a threat to others driving and walking on the street. A zero tolerance policy would definitely ensure less accidents.

PAUL C

yes spot on my friend.

Terry E

Straight out: American Policemen don't pursue zero tolerance policies towards drunk driving; they enforce the laws as they are not policy makers. They are the tool that ensures the general populace follows society's rules; they are constrained by the current law as to what they can enforce and not enforce.

While they may have input when laws are introduced to government entities, their role is Enforcer on behalf of the government not the Judge/jury on behalf of the head of government .

richard_beckham2001

Anybody caught over the limit should get a life ban.

reofanforever

yes! drinking and driving rarely gets punished enough!

maggot

yes. drink drivers are dirty scum bags that need more than punishing

Steve M

Yes. There is no excuse for it. If ambulance drivers have to be stone cold sober, then why should ordinary drivers imagine that they would be safer having had drink?

pilgrim

there is never an excuse for drink driving, ever. its irrisponsible and blood stupid and dangerous. so yes!!!

Aviator - THE Resolution

No, they have set the limit at which people can still function basically regularly. After one drink, you can still operate at 99% of your maximum ability. This would be the same as if you didn't get a full nights sleep the day before. You are technically not at 100%, but you are basically there. If you start saying you can't drive with any alcohol, then you would have to start telling people you can't drive while being tired, or while changing the radio station. They all technically hinder your ability, but not enough to make it illegal.

Paul M

definately and agree with your policy for banning too.

patsy

I agree with you that you shouldn't drink and drive. Disqualifying someone if they have had only one drink and are not over the limit is a bit harsh. But, I agree a zero tolerance should be adopted by the Police. The public should change their attitude towards drinking and driving and condone anyone who does drink and drive. The way it is now, people think it's acceptable to drink and drive and don't believe it affects their driving.

grabbngears

no, it is legal, and ok ;d by government ,
i would like to see more police services going to cleaning up the crack cocaine problem that effects more lives and business's than any drinking problem has, i don't condone drinking but it is a legal addictions with rehabs , in place alcohol is a disease not a symptom.
Raise the legal drinking age to 25 and make each licenced driver be taught a defencive driving course in the winter time, as most driver are bad drivers, get their licence once in sometimes 20 yrs of driving,ppl who were licenced in the 60's sure didn't have the amount of cars on the road as now ,, and most ppl take their driving licence in the summer when road s are warm and dry in perfect conditions then get the winter driving exp, in winter,Unbelievable, then imagine that driver taking in booze!!!

illiniangel

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Karen

Yes they should, as they should ALL crime!!!

Veston Pants

I've seen this proposed and it is in operation in Sweden (as far as I know) The main problem is that you could have 1/2 a bottle of wine with your dinner and be over the zero limit in the morning.
It is also shown that the legal limit should not affect reaction time as it stands therefore one would be penalising people for little accident safety gain.

xxB

sharon B

one drink is to much
if you want to drive its easy don't drink i think police have every right to grab a drink driver up and lock em up
respect
shaz

Dubs82

I have lost a dear family friend to a drunk driver, and I do believe the law and punishments for DUI or DWI could be more severe. However, 1 drink doesn't qualify you for being drunk - in fact studies have shown that people who are tired are more likely to cause an accident than people who have had 1 beer after work (for example). The legal blood limit is already very strict for people who can drink 3 beers or 2 martinis and "not feel it." So yes, I disagree with you. BUT I do feel like anyone caught driving over the legal limit should have their license revoked automatically. None of this "3 strikes" business.

oih o

I agree with what you are saying but there is the whole "i have been drinking i dont want to get caught" attitude.

Where i know ifi have had a drink, not enough to be over the limit but i know i have been drinking and theni drive home i drive so perfectly that i drive too well. So zero tolerance is a bad thing, but it could also be good in a similar light that if there was zero tolerancy, people would drive perfectly after 1 drink.

However i am not a big drinker so it does not affect me overly.

its nice to wish people would be alert and concentrating 100% but even when they are sober most people cannot drive!

avhac

Bealzebub

No. Drink can be a killer but it depends on the driver. There are many people I know of that are still better drivers after half a bottle of Whiskey than some people are stone-cold sober.

I did a test 18months ago with 15 other people on this with the DVLA. 7 people were deemed dangerous to drive after 15units of alcohol although 4 of them were deemed dangerous sober too. 1 person was actually more fit as a driver in this condition, and the other 7 of us were negligible differences. and 15 units is 7 1/2 pints, or 375mls of Vodka.

It clearly is an issue this prove, but much less severe than the quality of drivers is. Our major problem is the driving test today is designed that you learn to pass a test, not drive and adapt to your conditions. e.g a friend of mine failed 6 weeks ago for doing 65 in the outside lane of an expressway which can be dangerous admittedly, but it was pouring with rain at the time. The rules are very different in the rain.

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