Former president of MADD chapter busted for DUI

[meegbear]

Officers in Gainesville, Florida recently arrested a former president of a Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) group, and charged her with driving under the influence of alcohol.

Police said Debra Oberlin, 48, failed a field sobriety test, registering .234 and .239 blood-alcohol level. The legal limit for driving in Florida is .08.

An officer pulled over Oberlin on Feb. 18 at 1:10 am, after she was seen "driving erratically on Northwest 19th Street, swerving and crossing lanes," The Gainesville Sun reported.

"The officer wrote that Oberlin smelled of alcohol and had watery, bloodshot and dilated eyes. The report states that Oberlin told the officer she had four beers."

The MADD chapter in Gainesville, where Oberlin was president for three years, closed in 1996 for financial reasons.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/02/25/former-president-of-madd-chapter-busted-for-dui/

[Poboy]

1. OT- Its great to be a Florida Gator.

[lame54]

2. DDAM

[HopeHoops]

3. DAMM

Drunks Against Mad Mothers

[Horse with no Name]

4. If she lost a child to drunk driving, I am sure she is in pain that we can't fathom

Then the organization that she turned to for support closed.

Sorry--not going to kick this woman when she is down.

I hope she gets the help she needs.

[itsrobert]

6. What about all the other Drunks with EXCUSES

You think she is the only one who with one?

[karynnj]

7. I hope she gets the help she needs, but with those numbers, she could have killed another mother's

child. Saying that is not kicking her when she id down, but the very message her organization would have wanted sent. The only sympathy I have for her is that due to her good work to prevent drunk driving, this is a nationwide story and likely a much bigger story in her home town than otherwise.

No matter how troubled anyone is - or how much they at some point drink, they should not get behind the wheel of a car if they have had more than a very small amount to drink. From the chart in this link, even if she is 100 pounds, she likely had 5 drinks - and then decided to drive.

[BoWanZi]

16. I'm sorry, but I do not have much sympathy for drunk driving, she did the crime, now pay for it hard

No excuses for drunk driving. If you are an alcoholic and depressed, fine, but DON'T drive!!

[Obamanaut]

22. Did she in fact lose a child to drunk driving? Is there such a requirement

to join MADD, or can any concerned citizen be a member?

In any case, there is no justification for getting behind the wheel when one's faculties are dimmed by a mind altering substance.

[SidDithers]

5. .234 and .239...

that's a lot of alcohol in your bloodstream.

Sid

[karynnj]

8. Isn't that a level where she risks medical problems - even if not driving?

[SidDithers]

10. Reading wiki, I think BAC in the mid .3 or higher is where medical problems start...

but she'd probably have significant impairment of motor function and judgement at .24

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_alcohol_content

Sid

[MedicalAdmin]

18. That's a bit of blood in her alcohol stream.

No body bedda light a match.

[groundloop]

9. She, and all other drunk drivers, need to be taken off the roads. And then they need to get help

IMHO, there's not nearly enough attention paid to getting these people the help they need.

There's no excuse for driving while drunk. Period. It kills innocent people and inflicts tremendous pain on families. They need to be gotten off the roads, and then spend some time in jail to let them think about their situation. However, I feel strongly that society should do a lot more to treat these people who obviously have a problem. After their jail term why can't we provide mandatory rehab?

I have a cousin who's spent a lot of time in prison because of multiple drunk driving arrests (luckily he never hurt anyone). He's hard working, nice as can be, would help out anyone, but he has a serious addiction disease. All of the money that it's cost taxpayers to house him in prison could have been better used providing counseling and rehab. Then maybe, instead of him still being housed at taxpayer expense he'd be working, paying taxes, and contributing to society.

[Auntie Bush]

12. Yes, we could help balance the budget, create jobs and maybe save lives if we

put all those in prison for DRUNK driving and DRUG charges in rehab instead of jail. They wouldn't just get out of prison...without receiving help...and then out into society just to repeat the same illegal behavior and risk more lives.

Just think of the money saved by housing them instead of imprisonment.
Less crowding in jail, more jobs for psychologists and social workers and less expensive housing. The offenders can work sooner and pay taxes.

[proud2BlibKansan]

11. .234?!?!?!?

Wow.

[Horse with no Name]

13. Sounds almost suicidal, eh? n/t

[Pacifist Patriot]

17. On top of that, being female the alcohol is going to have a more severe affect on her....

than .234 would for a male. I'm in shock she was even able to turn the key in the ignition.

[SoCalDem]

14. Not the first time this has happened, if I recall correctly

Didn't the woman who created MADD get a DUI too?

The whole problem with alcohol is that it IMPAIRS thinking, and people often THINK they are "sober enough" to drive, and if no on with them convinces them to turn over the keys, they will drive.. Most of the time, nothing happens, but we all know that's not always the case:(

[MinneapolisMatt]

15. Ouch.

That's gonna leave a mark.

[Gold Metal Flake]

19. Four beers. Just four beers.

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_6Hv7gp1rzfU/Sce9Cx0WfSI/AAAAAAAAB7E/fvg743XhbYw/s400/sara+and+the+giant+beer.jpg

[madinmaryland]

21. I only had one beer at lunch, but don't know why I am so wiped out...

:beer:

[Gold Metal Flake]

23. I've been bested!

And I LOL'ed!

:toast:

[butterfly77]

20. LOL!

:rofl: