Spring Break
Carothers comments on drunk driving at URI
Brian Quinlan
Issue date: 4/28/09 Section: News
04/18/02 - Drunk driving is a problem that affects the University of Rhode Island and the surrounding communities, but no excuse - not even police breaking up a party - is reason enough for students to drive drunk, President Robert L. Carothers said.
"I always laugh when people say the university is forcing people to do illegal or immoral things, " Carothers said, referring to drunk driving.
Carothers said he is aware large parties have been broken up off campus and some students may have driven home intoxicated as a result. He said, however, there are no statistics to support the belief that more students drive drunk now than did when alcohol was allowed at campus events.
"I don't think there's any less people going to parties down the line but there isn't any more," Carothers said.
Dean of Student Life Fran Cohen said after the university changed its policy, the school stayed in close contact with the Narragansett Town government to monitor how the new laws would affect the town. In the three years after the university changed its policies, Cohen said there was no increase in arrests for driving while intoxicated. There was also no jump in the number of police called to bars or to break up large parties.
However, South Kingstown Police Chief Vincent Vespia said more problems have arisen off campus since the university's policies were changed.
"Of course with the zero tolerance policy on campus, off campus illegal activity has increased," Vespia said.
Statistics show many URI students have a drunk driving problem. In 1993, a study done by the Harvard School of Public Health showed 37.8 percent of students drove after drinking alcohol in the past 30 days. Only 10.2 percent of students said they had driven after having five or more drinks.
The same study showed that in 1999, 34.6 percent of students drove after drinking alcohol and 16.8 percent of students drove after having five or more drinks. A similar study, conducted in the Spring of 2001, shows a slight decline in driving after having anything to drink.
"I always laugh when people say the university is forcing people to do illegal or immoral things, " Carothers said, referring to drunk driving.
Carothers said he is aware large parties have been broken up off campus and some students may have driven home intoxicated as a result. He said, however, there are no statistics to support the belief that more students drive drunk now than did when alcohol was allowed at campus events.
"I don't think there's any less people going to parties down the line but there isn't any more," Carothers said.
Dean of Student Life Fran Cohen said after the university changed its policy, the school stayed in close contact with the Narragansett Town government to monitor how the new laws would affect the town. In the three years after the university changed its policies, Cohen said there was no increase in arrests for driving while intoxicated. There was also no jump in the number of police called to bars or to break up large parties.
However, South Kingstown Police Chief Vincent Vespia said more problems have arisen off campus since the university's policies were changed.
"Of course with the zero tolerance policy on campus, off campus illegal activity has increased," Vespia said.
Statistics show many URI students have a drunk driving problem. In 1993, a study done by the Harvard School of Public Health showed 37.8 percent of students drove after drinking alcohol in the past 30 days. Only 10.2 percent of students said they had driven after having five or more drinks.
The same study showed that in 1999, 34.6 percent of students drove after drinking alcohol and 16.8 percent of students drove after having five or more drinks. A similar study, conducted in the Spring of 2001, shows a slight decline in driving after having anything to drink.
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Alcohol Rehab
posted 5/08/09 @ 8:42 PM EST
Everyone gets effected by a drunk driving incident. It is an unfortunate occurrence, and I wish there was some way to put it to a minimum. Can't we all just realize that sooner or later you will either a) get caught or b) hurt someone. (Continued…)
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