Steubenville Central Catholic Students Discuss
Underage D.U.I. Laws

Grim Reaper Spends Day at the School

February 14, 2008

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More than 130 enthusiastic juniors and seniors gathered in the school's gymnasium on Thursday afternoon to learn firsthand about the underage d.u.i. laws from members of the Booze and Cruise, You'll Lose program. The program is sponsored by Gold, Khourey & Turak, the West Virginia State Police, the Wheeling Nailers, and WTOV-TV 9.

Curtiss Patrick, a veteran member of the Wheeling Nailers, and Jeff Oechslein from WTOV TV 9, served as emcees of the program and assisted the students with questions taken from the Booze Buster Quiz . Each student completed the quiz prior to the program. Attorney Christopher Turak from the Moundsville law firm of Gold, Khourey & Turak and Trooper Nick Nolder of the WV State Police teamed to discuss and provide explanations to those questions, and answered any additional questions the students had concerning driving under the influence. Those students who participated in the discussions or answered any of the questions were awarded with tickets to a Wheeling Nailers game, or a Booze and Cruise, You'll Lose t-shirt.

In discussing the answers with the students, Turak supplied real-life situations that were relevant to the students. “Most young people, and a lot of adults, don't realize they can get arrested for d.u.i. for giving their car keys to an intoxicated person,” said Turak. “You don't even have to be in the car with the person, in fact, you could be at home and not had a drop of alcohol and still get a d.u.i.. This is called ‘permitting d.u.i.'. Turak continued, “How this relates to you is, maybe you're at a friend's house, and your friend has a beer. He asks you to go to the store to pick up a movie or some chips. You don't feel like driving, but give your car keys to your friend to go. If your friend gets pulled over, you will also be arrested for d.u.i.. And for someone under 21, it's any measurable amount of alcohol.” Turak offered, “So, I encourage you to think about who you are giving your keys to the next time you're out.”

One of the highlights of the day involved Trooper Nolder of the WV State Police. Trooper Nolder selected senior Bill Speaker out of the crowd to participate in a mock d.u.i. arrest. With the use of Fatal Vision Goggles , Speaker simulated 0.10 intoxication and was taken through a series of field sobriety tests by Trooper Nolder. Tests included the one-legged stand and heal-to-toe test. Trooper Nolder even had Speaker submit to an actual breath test in front of his peers, which he passed. Unfortunately, based on the information obtained from the other tests, Trooper Nolder handcuffed Speaker and placed him under “arrest” to the roar of the students in attendance. “I know we had some fun here today,” said Nolder, “but it's important for you to know that if you get caught underage in West Virginia, it will show up on your license in Ohio as well.” “And while I cannot force you to take the breath test, your failure to submit to the test will result in an automatic suspension of your license from 1 year up to life,” Nolder explained.

On this Valentine's Day, the school had an uninvited guest - the Grim Reaper. Joel John, a student at the school, dressed up as the Grim reaper and “killed” a student every 30 minutes to symbolize the national death rate caused by drunk drivers. Each student he “killed” received a sheet identifying why they were killed and wrapped a red band around the person's arm identifying them as being “dead.”

In 1992, Gold, Khourey & Turak created the Booze and Cruise, You'll Lose program in an effort to educate the community about the legal, personal, and financial consequences of driving under the influence. Since 1978, the law firm has been committed to representing victims of alcohol-related accidents.