A recent report put Wisconsinites at the top of the list for drunken driving, with more than 25% of those polled admitting that they’ve driven while intoxicated in the past year. Unfortunately, the dangers of driving while under the influence hit home when pregnant Oconomowoc school administrator Jennifer Bukosky and her daughter were killed by a driver who’d had his license revoked for multiple OWI violations just two days before the accident.
The driver, former surgeon Mark Benson, apparently has a long history of substance abuse; his medical license was taken away in 2004 and he was sentenced for a 2007 drunken driving conviction to 75 days in the Waukesha County work-release jail, where he was to begin serving by May 9. What to do? Provide better information, beginning in elementary school, so kids stop drunken parents from driving? Increase the penalties for drunken driving offenses? Increase mass transit options, so drinkers can get home safely after a night on the town?
