Couple Arrested for DUI with Kids in Vehicles
Some couples are so in love they just want to do everything together. For example, a married couple from Defiance, Ohio was recently arrested for simultaneous DUIs while driving separate vehicles, each with a child in the car. Apparently police saw the husband driving in a suspicious manner and pulled him over around 2 a.m. on Saturday, and the wife was spotted sometime later parked on the road nearby. Both of them were found to have a blood-alcohol content over the legal limit, and they were both arrested. Each of the drunken drivers had one of the couple’s daughters in the car, seemingly playing the odds that they both would not crash while trying to drive drunk.
Driving drunk is obviously a bad idea, which is made worse by the decision to drive drunk with children in the vehicle. This kind of conduct will lead not only to criminal charges, but could also potentially lead to personal injury lawsuits. Driving drunk is automatically considered negligent in Tennessee, and a driver will be responsible for any actual damages caused by the decision to drive drunk.
However, there is also a good chance a jury will find that such conduct is reckless enough to warrant punitive damages awarded against the driver. This is incredibly likely if it was someone else’s child in the car who suffers severe or permanent injuries or death. Punitive damage awards in such situations can reach into the millions of dollars, potentially causing financial ruin to a driver who is found liable for them.
It is likely that the drivers’ drunken state caused them to make the decision to let the children ride with them while they were drunk, but that is not a legitimate defense to liability for damages caused by driving under the influence. Drivers need to be aware that they are still liable for the consequences of their actions, even if they are in an altered state of mind. Thus, they should plan ahead accordingly to prevent the occurrence of such situations.
Source: http://toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091130/NEWS02/911300347
