The Lessons of Nick Adenhart & Friends

Words are utterly insufficient when contemplating the avoidable loss of three young lives. Shaking our heads, whispering prayers, stopping for a moment to contemplate the tragedy -- none of that makes the untimely deaths of Angels rookie pitcher Nick Adenhart and two friends any more sensible. Smarter people than I have tried and failed to capture the scope of the tragedy.

Preliminary reports indicate that the driver who caused the accident was drunk, had driven drunk before, was driving with a suspended license and fled the scene. I think there is broad agreement across the nation that such a person has committed murder and deserves severe punishment.

I'm angry at that guy, just as you are. But I also recognize that he is probably an alcoholic. He has a paralyzing disease that makes him drink. And when he's drunk, he doesn't have the good judgment to avoid driving. That's not an excuse, but it's important to keep in mind when devising policy.

We need to stop social drinkers from driving and keep alcoholics away from cars altogether. We've done a pretty good job of the former, although our attitudes towards first-time offenders (see Tony LaRussa, Charles Barkley, Michael Phelps, et. al.) are way too lax and forgiving, particularly compared to our shrill, "reefer madness" response to casual marijuana use.

With respect to the latter, we have more work to do. People who drive drunk should lose their licenses for some period of time -- say a month -- that can demonstrate how inconvenient it would be to lose driving privileges altogether. They should be screened for abuse issues and sent to rehabilitation if they are alcoholic, and their licenses should not be returned until they demonstrate they are in remission.

Any subsequent DUI arrests should end driving careers more or less permanently. Perhaps cars should even be impounded. That way alcoholics don't have opportunities to get other people killed.

One thing is for sure: if you drive drunk on a suspended license, you're a felon and ought to be locked up for a long time. We need to protect our communities from one of the most lethal diseases in America, and prevent as many future Nick Adenharts as possible.

b