Citizens of Richmond County for Responsible Living wants to save their lives, and the lives of others who might come in contact with a vehicle they are driving while drunk.
Women are not excluded. Neither are all ages of drivers. Young men just seem to have the most accidents involving alcohol.
CORRL began a new campaign this weekend by posting reminders around the county about the risks of driving drunk.
It is just the beginning.
Billboards are being sited around the county to display messages about responsibilities and consequences connected to drinking alcohol and driving.
Richmond County is one of 18 counties in North Carolina with the highest rate of death from drunk drivers in accidents. So the county as a whole is being targeted in a grant from Sandhills Mental Health.
Angela Maxwell, prevention services manager with Alcohol and Drug Services which serves Richmond County, announced Thursday that Shirlyn Smith, local program coordinator, will be working with a four-part strategy.
The first is to initiate a media campaign which will include the billboards. It will include working with alcohol providers in seeking responsible serving of alcoholic beverages and public service notices on radio and television.
The second is to establish an intern program with the 20A District Attorney’s Office to provide interns to assist in the effort to prosecute drivers charged with driving while impaired.
Maxwell said she appreciated District Attorney Michael Parker’s willingness to work with CORRL on the issue.
Smith will be working with local colleges to provide at two interns needed for the DAs office. With 352 driving while impaired cases pending in District 20A as of Jan. 8, Maxwell said there was a lot of work to be done.
Maxwell said a third strategy will work to change perceptions about how much risk is really involved in driving under the influence. She hopes local law enforcement will work with Smith to publicize local enforcement efforts to catch drunk drivers at checkpoints.
The fourth strategy is to work with local officials on promoting the use of the nuisance abatement program whereby illegal liquor houses are closed and perhaps eliminated.
“We need to help identify those households where this is occurring,” Maxwell said.
The next targeting will involve St. Patrick’s Day activities where groups might gather and use alcoholic beverages.
Seeking high visibility, CORRL plans to have an information booth at the upcoming Thunderfest celebration in downtown Rockingham. It will seek to participate in all such public celebrations and community events in the future.
CORRL plans to have monthly meetings each fourth Thursday to keep up with progress of the campaign.
Contact reporter Tom MacCallum at 997-3111, ext. 15; e-mail tmaccallum@yourdailyjournal.com.\
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