ALCOHOL-RELATED CRASHES CREATE SOBERING STATS

It doesn't take long for Larry Holdman to grab the attention of his Substance Abuse Traffic Offenders Program class.

"I tell my class that half of all deaths in the United States each year are alcohol related," Holdman said. "There are enough deaths from alcohol-related accidents in just two years to wipe out the entire population of Cape Girardeau County. That's over 50,000 people."

In the past decade, four times as many Americans died in drunk-driving accidents as were killed in the Vietnam War.

Another sobering educational method is to the program's participants relate their personal tragedies.

"When a first offender hears a second offender say that they have manslaughter charges against them, it becomes a sobering experience," Holdman said. "Sometimes the person who is facing manslaughter charges blew a lower (blood-alcohol content) than the first offender."

People arrested for DWI must go through a three-step assessment process with someone like Holdman before they see a judge.

The sophisticated test is designed to determine whether the offender has an alcohol abuse problem.

"If we see that the person doesn't have a serious problem, they would be referred to a Substance Abuse Traffic Offenders class, which is much like the old Alcohol Traffic Offenders Program," Holdman said.

If an individual is found to have a problem with alcohol, the next step would be to take a 10-hour class or a Weekend Intervention Program.

"The laws have become strict enough that there really is no way around dealing with the problem," said Hugh Stone, who is licensed by the Department of Mental Health to run a SATOP and WIP class.

Prior to last summer, a DWI first-offender could have completed the educational program in a day.

Under the old system, authorities could have processed papers and recommended the state not return the driver's license and the driver would still get his license back, Holdman said.

But it now is an automatic loss of license for 30 days, regardless of what the judge says about a particular case.

"What has taken all of the loopholes out is the administrative revocation of a license, making all DWI cases count for future reference, and the sophisticated assessment program," Holdman said.

Like everything related to DWI cases, the assessment process can be expensive.

The initial assessment costs $60 and takes about an hour. The Offenders Education Program costs another $75. If someone is referred to the WIP program, there is an initial cost of $70 and a sliding scale goes into effect for the cost of a hotel room, meals and other expenses. The scale is determined by how many dependents an offender has.

Holdman thinks an effective educational tool is to make a DWI offender realize what the experience costs.

"The average cost of most first-time DWIs is usually between $3,000 and $4,000," Holdman said. "But there are some that have gone as high as $20,000. When you get into accidents, injuries and even deaths, the cost can become very high."

Add to that the increased rate for automobile insurance, which might last as long as five years with a clean driving record, and the costs can climb even yet.

"The easiest way to avoid all of this is to just not drink and drive," Stone said. "If you feel you need to drink, find a hotel, or take a cab. Don't run the risk of such an expensive ordeal by taking a chance."

Holdman predicted it won't be long before the BAC level for an automatic arrest will be .08.

"The Missouri Legislature voted on it this year," Holdman said. "It didn't pass this time, but I can see it coming up again."