Governor O’Malley Joins Family Members of Impaired-Driving Crash Victims and Survivors to Proclaim December “Maryland Remembers Month”          
          
ANNAPOLIS, MD (December 10, 2008) – In the fifth annual pilgrimage to Annapolis to remember those killed in impaired-driving crashes, family members of victims today joined Governor Martin O’Malley, state leaders and safety advocates to refocus efforts against drunk driving. As Governor O’Malley declared December “Maryland Remembers” Month, he encouraged Marylanders to remember the victims and the fact that December is one of the most deadly times of the year for alcohol-impaired driving.          
          
“There is perhaps no greater human tragedy than that of a preventable death; to lose a life we could have saved,” said Governor O’Malley. “During this holiday season, we urge every citizen of Maryland to honor those victims who’ve lost their lives and those survivors whose lives are forever changed by impaired driving. If you choose to drink, don’t drive. If others do, stop them.”           
          
The event began with a processional of family members, who presented photographs of their loved ones, followed by remarks from crash survivor and safety advocate Donna Hathaway Beck. Ms. Beck shared her encounter with a drunk driver on her way to her mother’s funeral in 1983. The Maryland resident, who was pregnant at the time, narrowly escaped death in the crash and, after extensive medical treatment, was able to give birth to a healthy young girl. Her daughter, now Police Officer Ashleigh Beck, also has been the victim of a crash that involved a drunk driver. Together, the mother-daughter team has worked to reduce impaired driving crashes as part of outreach efforts with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).          
          
With more than 2,000 Marylanders killed by impaired drivers in the last 10 years and 179 in 2007 alone, the O’Malley-Brown Administration continues its efforts to eradicate impaired driving through education and enforcement. In 2007, law enforcement performed nearly 25,000 Driving Under the Influence arrests, averaging 68 arrests per day and education efforts resulted in removing nearly 3,800 impaired drivers from Maryland’s roadways, by providing cab rides through the “Tipsy Taxi” and “Soberride” programs, and. In 2008, the State also ramped up education efforts, by getting 300 new partners in the State’s Strategic Highway Safety Plan and by airing 9,000 public service announcements in this region through the Checkpoint Strikeforce campaign.          
          
Current efforts include deploying Maryland’s law enforcement officers in full force throughout the holiday season to identify and arrest impaired drivers. In preparation for the upcoming legislative session, Governor O’Malley also noted that he is now reviewing the recommendations of the legislatively mandated “Task Force to Combat Driving Under the Influence of Drugs and Alcohol.” The Task Force, which has been meeting for the last 18 months, made several legislative recommendations including: tightening legislation to discourage and punish underage drinking, increasing the penalties for impaired driving, and strengthening “repeat offender” laws.          
          
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Editor’s Note: “Maryland Remembers” is an initiative of the Maryland State Highway Administration’s Highway Safety Office and Maryland’s Impaired Driving Coalition.