Boston Drunk Driving Accident Lawyer Blog

January 6, 2016

School Bus Driver Arrested for DUI

According to a recent news article from People, a school bus driver in California was recently arrested on suspicion of drunk driving with 28 students on her bus. Authorities alleged the 24-year-old female driver was clearly and obviously intoxicated at the time of her arrest.

Witnesses say the bus driver was taking children home after school on Friday afternoon when her bus managed to get stuck on a small dirt road in a manner that was blocking all traffic. When authorities arrived to see what the trouble with the bus was, they say they immediately detected a strong odor of alcohol on her breath. Continue reading

January 5, 2016

Drugged Driving Suit Shows Boston Drivers The Real Risks of Getting Behind the Wheel Impaired

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Drivers have become aware of dangers associated with drunk driving thanks to decades of education and advocacy by groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving. Unfortunately, while the DUI death rate due to impaired drivers has gone down, the number of people who drive under the influence of drugs is rising. Driving while drugged is often just as dangerous (or more dangerous) and just as illegal as driving while under the influence of alcohol. Unfortunately, motorists underestimate the risks and aren’t aware of how impairing it can be to operate a motor vehicle after consuming prescription or non-prescription medications.

As medical marijuana legalization moves through more states in the U.S. and as baby boomers age and prescription drug use becomes ever-more common, lawmakers are grappling with how to establish and enforce DUI laws for narcotics use. However, motorists need to make a commitment now to staying sober and not getting behind the wheel when they’ve either drank too much or consumed drugs that cause impairment. To help encourage motorists to understand risks of impaired driving and to make the necessary commitment to staying sober, Ford has created a drugged driving suit.

January 4, 2016

Boston Suburb Gets Grant to Increase Drunk Driving Patrols

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

The time between Thanksgiving and New Year’s is historically the most dangerous period of the year in terms of serious drunk driving accidents and drunk driving fatalities. According to a recent news report from the Concord Patch, the town of Concord, Massachusetts has recently received a grant to increase drunk driving patrols this holiday season.

Specifically, this campaign is called “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” and the Concord Police Department will be part of an effort with 201 other law enforcement agencies trying to significantly reduce the number of drunk driving accidents this holiday season. Continue reading

December 31, 2015

The Reason Boston MBTA Provides Free Rides on New Year’s Eve

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Since 1983, New Year’s Eve party goers in Boston have been able to get a free ride home on the T. This is part of long standing effort to reduce drunk driving incidents and help make sure everyone makes it home safe and sound.

However, this program was not always around. The free rides on New Year’s Eve program was started after a series of deadly drunk driving accidents that all occurred around the same time, according to a recent news feature from Boston.com. This was during the time when Michael Dukakis was governor, and he was especially sensitive to the issue of drunk driving. Dukakis’ brother was ridding a bicycle in Brookline neighborhood of Boston in 1973 when he was hit by a drunk driver. Continue reading

December 30, 2015

Preventing DUI Crashes as the Football Season Ends

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

The football season is a high-risk time on the roads because motorists tend to get drunk while watching games. Binge drinking and impaired driving are common pastimes for many football fans, despite the dangers these behaviors present when a motorist gets behind the wheel.

With playoff time and the Super Bowl fast approaching, the risks of drunk driving will continue to rise on big game days. The dangers associated with drunk driving, however, are largely preventable: motorists should avoid drinking during games or should make sure they have a designated driver lined up before they actually start consuming alcoholic beverages. Unfortunately, too many drivers fail to follow these simple precautions and instead they cause accidents that injure themselves or others on the roads.

December 24, 2015

Boston Drivers Must Be Aware of Added Holiday DUI Risks

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Over the holiday season, there is a significantly increased risk motorists will become involved in a car crash. This increased danger comes not only from the fact there are more people traveling and going hundreds of miles from home, but also because there are many more motorists who end up drunk behind the wheel.

Drivers need to know the holiday season is a high-risk time for DUI. Making a commitment to stay sober yourself ensures you do not become a part of the problem and helps you to avoid injuring yourself or others.

Unfortunately, motorists may be unable to do anything to protect themselves if someone else on the road is drunk and makes a dangerous choice leading to a crash. While it can be hard to keep yourself safe if an impaired driver is around, however, there are a few things you can do to try to avoid a holiday DUI accident.

December 20, 2015

A National Day of Remembrance for Drunk Drivers

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Mother Against Drunk Driving (MADD) has been doing what they do to fight against the epidemic of drunk driving accidents, including fatal accidents in the United States, for decades. This is actually the 35^th year MADD’s anti-drunk driving campaign has been in existence, and, while the organization has done a lot of great work and had a tremendous positive impact, there is still a lot of work to be done. For example, according to MADD’s general statistical data, more than 10,000 people were killed in drunk driving accidents, and nearly 300,000 more were injured in drunk driving accidents in 2013 alone.

These are numbers that seem like they should be impossible but unfortunately are very much a reality. In terms of the economic impact, drunk driving incidents cost the American public over $130 billion each year in damages. To help get the message out, MADD has declared that a National Day of Remembrance shall be observed on the third day of December each year. The organization wants it do be known that a place setting at the table may be empty following a drunk driving accident, but the victim will always be in the hearts of his or her friends and family members, and this is a day to remember that. Continue reading

December 18, 2015

State Rep. Arrested for “Super Drunk Driving”

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

In the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the legal limit a driver’s blood alcohol content (BAC) when getting behind the wheel of motor vehicle is 0.08 grams of alcohol per hundred milliliters of blood. This is the legal limit across the United States due to the lobbying efforts of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and others in support of cutting down on drunk driving fatalities in the nation.

Technically, the United States federal government does not have authority to create a mandatory blood alcohol limit in each of the several states because of the 10^th Amendment states rights provision. However, Congress does have a enumerated plenary power to tax and spend for the general welfare of the American people. It is the spending clause that allows for a national drinking age and a national blood alcohol limit. Congress can give highway-funding grants to the states as its members see fit. If they wish to tie receipt of federal highway funding grants to the state’s choice to institute a specific law, they have the right to do so without violating the 10^th Amendment. This is how Congress was able to a pass a national BAC limit in an attempt to curb drunk driving accidents, including drunk driving fatal accidents, in the United States. Continue reading

December 15, 2015

Massachusetts Man Convicted for Fatal DUI Accident

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A drunk driving car accident that results in a serious personal injury or a fatality is at its essence a civil personal injury lawsuit filed under a theory of negligence or wrongful death under negligence. The first element in any negligence case in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts is that the defendant owed a duty of care to the plaintiff. This means that defendant was obligated to act as a reasonable and prudent person to prevent foreseeable harm to foreseeable persons and property.

Generally speaking in our legal system, a person does not owe a duty of due care toward others unless he or she has a legal obligation, contractual obligation, or a fact-based obligation. Everyone who gets a driver’s license at the RMV in Massachusetts, or at the counterpart agency in their own states, most typically called a DMV, signs a document (usually electrically) in which they agree to abide by all traffic regulations and drive in a reasonable and prudent manner. This means everyone who has a drivers’ license has a generally duty of care toward all other drivers and pedestrians on the road. Continue reading

December 12, 2015

How to Reduce Boston DUI Crash Risks at Your Holiday Party

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Throwing a holiday party at your home or for your office is a great way to celebrate the season and to show friends, family, and co-workers how important they are to you. If you have a party, however, you take on some liability risks. In Massachusetts, social host laws impose responsibility on those throwing parties. Social host laws mean if you host an event and serve alcohol, you could find yourself faced with a civil lawsuit against you based on the actions of your guests.

Victims who are hurt by impaired drivers benefit greatly from social host laws, because these laws give them another potential defendant who they can pursue a claim for compensation against.