Former MADD President Busted for DUI
They say that you should practice what you preach. So if you spend your time preaching the ills of drunk driving as part of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, you probably shouldn't do it yourself. But that's just what Debra Oberlin, is accused of, the Gainesville Sun reports. The former MADD presidents' DUI has many people screaming hypocrisy.
Oberlin was allegedly spotted driving all over the road in Gainesville, Florida at 1 a.m., swerving and crossing lanes. When pulled over, Debra Oberlin allegedly registered a .234 and .239 on breath alcohol tests, three times the legal limit of .08, the Daily Mail reports. According to the police report, Oberlin admitted to drinking four beers. (But hey, she didn't say what size they were, now did she?)
Gainesville's MADD chapter no longer exists, it closed in 1996 due to a lack of funds, prior to the MADD president's DUI, Oberlin had been chapter president for three years.
Mother Against Drunk Driving is a polarizing non-profit that seeks to stop drunk driving, provide support for those impacted by drunk driving, stop underage drinking, and advocate for a stricter alcohol policy.
The group was originally formed by Candice Lightner, who later left the organization. In 2002 she said that MADD "has become far more neo-prohibitionist than I had ever wanted or envisioned ... I didn't start MADD to deal with alcohol. I started MADD to deal with the issue of drunk driving." Lightner briefly represented the American Beverage Institute in its unsuccessful fight against the 0.08 percent BAC law.
Related Resources:
- DUI / DWI Resources (FindLaw)
- Car Safety Laws Drive Auto-Related Deaths to Record Low in 2008 (FindLaw's Common Law Blog)
- A Walk Through Two Drunk Driving Cases: How the Criminal Justice System Works(FindLaw)