Court Shows Students the Effects of Alcohol

By David Schulte, Tulsa World, Okla.

Oct. 3–On Thursday, ninth-graders at Union Intermediate High School will head to court to witness the harmful effects of alcohol and other drugs.

The courtroom will be staged in the gymnasium, but the crimes involving substance abuse and the sentencing to follow will be real.

"We got the judge, defendants and lawyers," said Danny Williams, student assistant program coordinator at the district.

"We have a trial of individuals who have broken the law concerning a substance abuse issue."

The school’s one-day courtroom is part of the Courts Raising Awareness of Students in High School program, also called CRASHs Court.

The program, funded through the Oklahoma Highway Safety Office, aims to reduce alcohol-related crashes, fatalities and injuries among young drivers, said Judy Phillips, program coordinator.

Underage drinking and driving is a problem that needs more attention, she said, and recent statistics support her claim.

About one in four high school students in Oklahoma said they drank alcohol before their 13th birthday, according to the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.

Nearly half of the state’s annual driving under the influence arrests involve

people under the age of 21, according to Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services.

The CRASHs Court program at the Intermediate High School, 7616 S. Garnett Road in Broken Arrow, contains three segments to increase students’ awareness of the dangers of drunken driving.

Part one consists of people found guilty of drinking under the influence of alcohol or an illicit drug, Williams said.

The second part involves a PowerPoint presentation by a judge who informs students about the negative consequences of drinking and driving.

In the final segment, a guest speaker shares the experience of losing a loved one to drinking and driving, Williams said.

Jonathon Hingey, vice president of the Drug Free Youth organization at Union High School, 6636 S. Mingo Road, recalls attending the CRASHs Court program three years ago.

He said seeing people sentenced for driving under the influence of alcohol leaves a greater impact on teens than reading a handful of statistics.

"It’s interesting that people are going to prison on mistakes that we students can make," Hingey said. "Whenever you see the emotion of convicted people and their families, it helps you realize how it can drastically affect their lives."

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Alcohol kills more youth than all illegal drugs combined.

Eighty percent of alcohol-related fatalities are caused primarily by the consumption of beer.

Approximately 4,000 Oklahomans under 21 years of age are arrested each year for drunkenness.

Alcohol is a significant factor in the four leading causes of death — motor vehicle crashes, unintentional injuries, homicide and suicide — among people ages 10 to 24.

Two years ago, underage drinking cost residents of Oklahoma $778 million.

Sources: The Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services and the 2Much2Lose initiative, sponsored by Oklahoma Highway Safety Office.

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