Drinking, driving

"Seeing-eye driver" is police lingo for a vehicle weaving around on the road. Those drivers aren't necessarily drunk, but many are.

Beginning last week and continuing through Labor Day, a federal grant is enabling police agencies in the region to mount extra patrols to enforce laws against driving while intoxicated. The campaign, "You Drink & Drive, You Lose," is distributing almost $250,000 to Missouri law enforcement agencies during the period. Cape Girardeau police and the Missouri State Highway Patrol will set up a sobriety checkpoint sometime during the campaign.

First-time DWI offenses carry a 30-day license suspense to be followed by restricted driving privileges. Second and third offenses carry much stiffer penalties. Anyone found guilty of a third offense is subject to a $5,000 fine, loss of driver's license for 10 years and up to seven years in prison.

The heightened enforcement occurs just as a new law takes effect suspending the driver's license of anyone under 21 caught drinking. The offender does not have to be driving at the time.

With probable cause, law enforcement officers can administer a breath test and can prove possession if the test registers 0.02 percent or higher blood alcohol. Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle says that means an officers would have to observe the minor in possession of alcohol or detect an alcohol odor. How this will work in practice for law enforcement agencies on college campuses is to be seen.

The new law suspends a minor's driver's license for 30 days. A second conviction would result in a 90-day suspension of driving privileges. A third offense will ground the driver for a year.

The new law also increased penalties for anyone receiving numerous drunk driving convictions. A fourth offense is punishable by up to seven years in prison. A fifth offense carries a maximum prison term of 15 years.

The new law sends minors the message that drinking before the age of 21 can have serious consequences. How stringently the law will be enforced remains the big question.