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Saving Lives

It is unfortunate that every day, unthinkable tragedies shatter the lives of many families. For Lisa and David, July 2, 2005, began as a perfect wedding day. More than 200 close friends and relatives gathered on the beach. Lisa's fondest memory of the day was of her nieces, 5-year-old Grace and 7-year-old Katie, dressed like princesses, throwing rocks into the Long Island Sound.

After a day full of celebration, Lisa's parents, Christopher and Denise, along with her sister, Jennifer, Jennifer's husband, Neil, and their daughters, Grace and Katie, all headed home in a limousine. On the ride home, the limo was struck head-on by a drunk driver. Police reports indicate the driver, 24-year-old Martin Heidgen, had at least 14 drinks, and his blood alcohol level was more than three times the legal limit.

Police say he was driving 70 miles an hour down the wrong side of a major highway for at least two miles before he crashed into the limousine. Kate and the limo driver were killed instantly at the scene, while the rest of the family suffered horrific injuries. Even after taking all the seemingly right precautions of hiring a limousine to provide safe transport for family members after the wedding celebrations, no one could have foreseen the horrific accident that would ultimately change all their lives.

Denise and Chris, Jennifer's parents, were also severely injured in the crash. Chris, a respected police officer, had to have his leg amputated. Still, the emotional wounds run deeper - they say the accident destroyed their once close-knit family. "We struggle to be a family that celebrates holidays together," Denise says. Stanley, the limo driver, was known to give drunken drivers free limo rides home during his eight and a half years as a driver. His two sons, Keith and Nolan, still grieve the death of their dad.

In November 2006, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) launched a campaign to eliminate drunken driving within the next 10 years. Part of their goal is for all states to require mandatory ignition interlock devices, which have been shown to be up to 90 percent effective in keeping repeat drunken drivers off the roads. Before drivers with prior DUIs can start cars with these devices, they must blow into a device that measures their blood alcohol levels. If alcohol is detected, the car will not start.

Road safety and accident awareness can never be taken for granted. Education programs are needed at the grass root level to teach people that drink driving is not acceptable in today’s society. The cost it imposes on society in terms of fiscal and emotional duress is becoming too much to bear. New laws and harsher penalties will ultimately make roads safer for chauffers and all other drivers.

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