If you don’t know what it’s like to drive drunk in a golf cart with a police officer, next week is your chance.
The EC Police Department, along with The California Office of Traffic Safety, will be hosting, “Driving Under The Influence Awareness,” Wednesday from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m in front of the Schauerman Library.
“This event will be one of the biggest ones. There will be between twenty-five to thirty officers to help with the event and answer questions that any students may have,” Sergeant Kirk Johnston said.
Johnston said students will get to use simulators that recreate the feeling of being intoxicated and then be asked to perform everyday tasks, such as driving a car.
There will be a course set up with cones, where students can drive a golf cart while using the simulators.
Basketball hoops will also be set up for students to test their hand-and-eye coordination.
“We just want to be able to forewarn the students, who are going to be at events with alcohol, the consequences of driving drunk,” Johnston said.
The event is open to all students and will take place before the week of spring break, in an effort to teach students to remember what they learn from their experiences.
Cindy Pineda, student service officer, will be helping with student participation and believes the program will be beneficial to the students by not only informing them, but creating awareness.
“I hope students will realize the dangers and know not to drive drunk, because it is not only putting their life in danger, but the lives of others as well,” Pineda said.
Surveys have proven as many as three-fourths of American adults believe false myths about alcohol and its effects on physical impairment.
“We want students to think of the consequences before they get in the car after they have been drinking or before they get in the car with someone who has been drinking,” Johnston said.
Nearly two out of every five Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related traffic accident in their lifetime.
More information may be obtained by contacting the Police Department at (310) 660-3100.
“Students tend to be ignorant about drunken driving, but once they get the first-hand experience of how it is, it is different,” Pineda said.
