Wasted in Wasted in WisconsinWisconsin

What teenage drivers should know about alcohol abuse and

impaired drivingThis supplement was created by Ben Poston || Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

E-mail: bposton@journalsentinel.com

Wisconsin residents binge drink at a higher rate than any other state in the country. And that can lead to a whole host of problems. || Photo by Mark Hoffmann/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel

Nearly half a million people Nearly half a million people ((477,961) were convicted of were convicted of drunken driving in Wisconsin from 1989 to 2008. drunken driving in Wisconsin from 1989 to 2008. More than two-thirds of those convicted were considered first-offense drunken drivers. Nearly 8,000 had five or more convictions. ||||

Photo by Mark Hoffmann

Drunken driving facts

18-year-olds Ashley Britsch-Knetzger and her friend Tahlia Heroux, were killed in June 2008 in Ashwaubenon just before their high school graduation when an allegedly intoxicated driver speeding in a Porsche ran a red light.

|| Photo by Mark Hoffmann

Nearly everyday, someone dies in Wisconsin in a drunken-driving crash.

Wasted in WisconsinWasted in Wisconsin Binge

drinking is a huge problem at the UW-Madison

Click here for video link (Instructors: You can

expand the video to full-screen on the video link)

A woman drinks beer from a plastic bat while playing a drinking game at the annual Mifflin Street block party in Madison. || Photo by Mark Hoffman

Cold hard factsCold hard facts More than 1,600 people were

killed in Wisconsin from 2003 to 2007 in alcohol-related traffic crashes.

Of those killed, 95 people were 18 years old or younger.

Wisconsin is the only state in the country where first-time drunken driving is not considered a crime.

A man whose blood-alcohol level was found to be .022 is led into the Dane County detox center. || Photo by Mark Hoffman

How Wisconsin stacks upHow Wisconsin stacks up

Nationally, Wisconsin ranks: First in binge drinking, admitted drunken-

driving and the percentage of drinkers in the population

Fourth for the rate of drunken-driving fatalities as a percent of all fatalities, 2007

Click here for an interactive nationwide map

Ricky Adair, right, had been convicted of drunken driving 9 times when his pickup smashed into a car driven by Sarah Johnson, nearly killing her. His drinking and driving has cost society roughly $365,000, a small chunk of the $2.7 billion yearly cost for alcohol-related crashes.

Ricky Adair

The costs of drunken drivingThe costs of drunken driving

Alcohol impairs your judgmentAlcohol impairs your judgment

Reporters took a Breathalzyer to Summerfest and Miller Park. They found many people thought they were less drunk than they actually were.

A 27-year-old man said he could drive, despite the roughly 20 drinks he had downed and his 0.25 blood-alcohol level. – “Absolutely,” he said. “I've been doing this for 10 years, dude.”

Click here for graphic

Health effects of alcoholHealth effects of alcohol Drinking alcohol to excess can

cause serious damage to your brain, liver, heart and pancreas.

Sustained alcohol use can shrink your brain.

In 2006 alone, more than 200 people in Wisconsin died from cirrhosis of the liver.

These teenagers were killed by drunken drivers:

From top left, clockwise: Amanda Brandt, Cody Green, Sarah Mullenbach, Clint Erickson, Eric Glover, Tyler Crowley-Lee

These teenagers drove drunk and paid the ultimate price:

Joshua Quelle died in 2003 in Clark County when he drove off the road.

Jeremy Tagney, was killed in 2004 in Adams County during a joyride.

Byron Smith died two weeks before Christmas 2006 when he rolled over into a creek in Kewaunee County.

A cautionary taleA cautionary tale Ben Brant, 17, played basketball

for the Southwestern Wildcats, served on student council and carried a 3.9 GPA.

He was killed when he went to a party in 2003 in Grant County with his friend, Michael Busch, who drove his car at 90 mph and lost control. Busch survived.

Click here for the link to interactive graphic of all victims

Ben Brant

A friendship destroyedA friendship destroyed A drunken driver killed

Jillian Kuether, 20, a sophomore at UW-Milwaukee, in 2003 in Sheboygan County.

The crash left her best friend, Sarah Van Der Puy a junior at UW-Madison, with traumatic brain injuries that still affect her personality.

Click here for a video about the Sobering Reminders series (very strongly encouraged)

Jillian Kuether, left, and Sarah Van Der Puy.

A night in detoxA night in detox The consequences of

binge drinking and alcohol abuse are real.

Video of Dane County Detoxification Center (Warning: this video contains graphic footage)

Click here for link to video

A man is evaluated while a Madison Police officer fills out paperwork at a Detoxification Unit in Madison. || Photo by Mark Hoffman

Discussion questionsDiscussion questions1. What problems occur in people’s lives because of

alcohol abuse?

2. What can you do to avoid being in a situation in which drunken-driving might occur?

3. How would your parents react if you were caught, injured or killed while driving drunk?

4. What are consequences of drunken driving?

5. How does excessive alcohol use affect your health?

““The Edge of Reality”The Edge of Reality” “The Edge of Reality” is a 48-minute movie

featuring students from Neenah High School in lead roles.

The film, which includes realistic depictions of injury and death, shows a drinking party gone terribly wrong.

Click here for link to movie (optional)