St. Louis Injury Lawyer Blog

With springtime in the air and warmer temperatures on the way, that means it's prom and graduation season. That also means Missouri law enforcement officers have been cracking down on DUI offenders in an effort to preventunderage drunk driving accidents, the Missouri Department of Transportation says.

St. Louis Car Accident Lawyer Ryan R. Cox encourages parents to be proactive in talking with their teens about the dangers of underage drinking as well as underage drinking and driving.

Between 2008 and 2010, there were 90 fatal crashes and 276 accidents that resulted in disability involving an impaired driver under 21. In those accidents 98 people were killed and 426 people seriously injured, the Department of Transportation reports. Last year alone, 234 people were killed and 957 seriously injured in Missouri crashes involving alcohol.

Accidents involving injury are devastating. They can result in weeks or months in the hospital, disfigurement, burns, severe brain or head injuries, disability and even death. When an underage driver has been drinking and has lost the ability to properly control a vehicle, they can have the potential to become a deadly weapon.

In Missouri, according to 2008 data by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 195 people died in accidents involving young drivers, which was eighth highest in the United States. Of those, 88 were drivers and 62 were passengers in their vehicles. Another 39 were in other vehicles and six were pedestrians.

Even an underage drunk driver who doesn't get into an accident faces severe punishment. Missouri has a Zero Tolerance Law, meaning the driver's license will be suspended if a teen driver is caught even with a trace of alcohol in their system. An arrest can result in jail time, having to use an ignition interlock device, costly fines and fees and other sanctions. Insurance costs will skyrocket. And arrest is a humiliating way to culminate prom or graduation.