Judy Thein lost her daughter in a DUI collision in 2005. Courtesy photo.

The holiday season is upon us. With the festivities of the season comes accountability that is often not thought about.

The accountability comes when you step into a motor vehicle. When you are the driver of a motor vehicle, you hold your passenger's life in your hands along with the lives of passengers in other vehicles.

In the matter of a few seconds, a thoughtless, negligent choice of a drunk driver can forever change the lives of families and friends as they are left with the devastation of a deadly vehicle tragedy. The lives of many are shattered forever, as there is no way to pick up the pieces to one’s life once you have lost a loved one due to a negligent act of a thoughtless DUI driver. If you care enough about your passengers and other innocent people, then it is your responsibility to keep them safe.

Think of what your life would be like once you have received a telephone call informing you that your loved one was killed in a devastating DUI tragedy. That call could be about your spouse, close relative, best friend or your precious child. Think how grieving parents must feel as they say goodbye while watching their child’s casket being lowered into the ground. The intensity of that pain is next to none.

The thoughtless, negligent act of an irresponsible DUI driver can rip the heart out of a family and friends forever. They will never be whole again. No longer will the voice of a loved one be heard. No longer will a smile be seen. No longer will a loved one share in a life with their family or friends that they were meant to. The emptiness that a family feels is like a bottomless hole. All of this devastation is because someone carelessly chose to drink and drive without regard for another human being.

An irresponsible DUI driver, no matter what age, who continues to operate a motor vehicle without regard for the safety of their passengers or other innocent people, is inexcusable. There is no excuse that can condone the death of an innocent person due to a deadly DUI tragedy because a driver was selfish in their choice of actions.

Life is the most precious gift that we will ever have. Each time you get behind the wheel of a motor vehicle, remember you hold life in your hands. To protect a life, you must be accountable for a life. When you drink and drive you are capable of murdering. You are capable of destroying a family forever. If you see yourself in this description either now or previously, it is not too late to hold yourself accountable and strive to change.

This holiday season, tragically, there are families that will no longer be able to share their special times together because of harmful choices that were made by an irresponsible DUI driver. Don’t be the one to rip a family apart because you were the cause of a DUI collision or tragedy. Take responsibility for your actions now, before it is too late.

Once you have caused a deadly DUI tragedy, there is no turning back. You will be forced to live with the consequences and your guilt for the rest of your life while an innocent family will be forced to live with devastation and emptiness for the rest of their lives.

We each have the power to allow everyone to have a safe and happy holiday as we all can make a responsible choice not to drink and drive.

Judy Thein serves on the Clearlake City Council and is a founding member of Team DUI, a group of individuals and officials working to stop underage drinking and drinking and driver. Her daughter was tragically killed in December 2005 because a DUI driver made an irresponsible choice to drink and drive.

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