Add this story to the list of crazy things drivers do, instead of driving: Eating Cereal.
“Police said a man who was stopped for erratic driving on Central Avenue last week was eating a bowl of cereal and milk while he drove. He told officers he was hungry,” says the Boston Globe story posted on the ABC News website.
I’ve previously written about texting and other cell phone usage while driving here.
Many states use D.W.I. checkpoints in efforts to curb intoxicated drivers. The Texas State Senate took up the issue recently and approved the use of such checkpoints. The measure now heads to the House. If approved it will go to the Governor’s desk. Law enforcement is also increasing its use of forced blood draws on those suspected of D.W.I.
For an idea of what goes on at a D.W.I. checkpoint, check out this audio from the stop and detention of a criminal defense lawyer at a California D.W.I. Checkpoint.
Bexar County will reportedly continue its forced blood draws of DWI suspects throughout the year. Those who refuse both breath and blood tests could face additional charges for resisting arrest. This program has been used around the state over the past eighteen months. (Austin, San Antonio, Seguin, Colin County, Dallas-Fort Worth) The “Anatomy of a No-Refusal Weekend” appears here on the Texas District and County Attorney Association website.
Interestingly, an Austin American Statesman article published in February, 2009, notes that about half of all those arreted refuse a breath test, while nearly all of elected officials asked to submit to a breath test refuse.
The Legislature is again taking a look at authorizing D.W.I. checkpoints. Again. Senate Bill 298 can be found here. An Austin American-Statesman story outlines the status of the proposed legislation.
The Texas Legislature is looking to put restrictions on the manner that Texas drivers use their mobile phones while driving. Today’s Houston Chronicle outlines the proposed legislation here.
The Bill affecting mobile phones and teen drivers can be found here. It appears that the offense would be a Class C misdemeanor, and not involve jail time. A bill proposing to double fines for inattentive drivers is also before the legislature.
Update: Uh, the legislature may need to add some language to the bill…check out this story from Dayton, Ohio.
The Austin Police Department has completed what can only be described as a sort of “straw-poll” of DWI arrestees and determined that bars in the downtown area are mentioned most often by DWI suspects when being arrested.
http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/01/17//0117bars.html
High Concentration of People + High Concentration of Bars + High Number of One Way Streets + High Concentration of Officers Patrolling Area = Large Number of DWI Arrests.
Got it.