After a two week break due to the holidays I was back it in DUI School this week. Everyone seemed to have had a good break and were thankful for not having to come to class for two weeks. Our guest instructor posed an interesting question to the group this week – “What is the most impactful thing you have learned during your time in class.”
I thought about this a bit and for me the most important thing I have learned is the strange dichotomy of DUIs in Marin County. On one hand it clearly a pervasive and persistent problem and there are a large number of people drinking and driving every day in Marin. On the other hand there are the extreme penalties, social stigma and one sided “justice” system. The result is a sort of a “Russian Roulette” justice where the vast majority of people drink and drive and don’t get caught and the unlucky few get caught and pay the big price. More than anything else I feel there is an information gap where people have no idea about how bad the penalties are for a DUI conviction until they have one and it is too late.
As Forrest Gump said “Life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get.” – except with a DUI what you get may be soft and brown but it sure don’t taste like chocolate…