BAKERSFIELD, CA - The severity of people driving under the influence is at epidemic proportions in Kern County, according to law enforcement officials. But some groups are looking to change that by creating a culture of education, even though officials say it's an uphill battle.
The district attorney's office said its DUI case load is not slowing down, and Mothers Against Drunk Driving said the best line of defense in the fight against drunken driving is law enforcement and education.
Advocates looking to change the current situation are saying the one thing everyone can do to make an impact is to not drink and drive.
That message has been implemented just about everywhere and in every program taught in schools and special classes for first time offenders.
But, with all the education provided, many people are left wondering why Kern County has a DUI epidemic.
"Within a blink of an eye, I was gone completely," said Leanne Harris, who was paralyzed in a DUI crash.
Harris recalls the day she almost died on April 21, 2014.
"From what everyone tells me is I got out and opened my gas tank to start filling it up and I went to put my credit card in and that was the last moment I ever got to walk," Harris said.
According to the California Highway Patrol, Kristopher Carter, a former Bakersfield police officer, was drunk when his truck plowed into the shell gas station off Merle Haggard Drive.
The crash left Harris paralyzed from the waist down.
"I was at KMC for two months locked up in a bed - couldn't move. I had a cast on my chest to keep me from messing my back up more," said Harris.
The 21-year-old has come a long way.
She now shares her story, educating teenagers about the dangers of drinking and driving, by attending special classes like "Start " held by the CHP.
"I remember laying at KMC and having my sister there and I never knew why but every time I closed my eyes I would scream for her name. Then she came and told me it's because I layed on a gas pump crying - begging for her," she said.
Harris and her family hope to make our local roadways safer and encourage drivers to always make the right decision, by sharing their story with others with programs like Start Smart.
"You don't want to be that person to live for the rest of your life with knowing that this is what you've done to somebody," said Mary Harris, Leanne's mother.
Start Smart is one of many programs in Kern County aimed at reducing drunk driving collisions....by powerful speeches and videos.
"It helps young drivers, newly licensed and future licensed drivers. It talks to them about making choices and that the choices that they make can affect their lives in the negative as well as the positive," said Robert Rodriguez, CHP officer.
Many people who made the wrong choice and drink and drive end up at a different program called Steps.
"We serve anywhere between 650 to 800 people a month. That's a lot of drunk drivers and that's only in metropolitan Bakersfield," said Steps executive director Linda Eviston.
The Steps program offers special treatment and prevention services.
David Rodriguez is a DUI offender who crashed into another car, hurting a woman and her young daughter.
Rodriguez said he doesn't even remember driving that night.
"The driver has a choice, the victims don't have a choice. They're innocent and caught in the crossfire and it's a shame, it's a shame," said Rodriguez.
"That is the most preventable death or crash, it is easily preventable. Just don't drink, don't drink and get behind the wheel," Eviston said.
Victim advocate Carla Pearson agrees, but said many people don't understand the message.
"Very risky behavior, disregard for human life basically. Shame on them," said Pearson.
Pearson works with Mothers Against Drunk Driving, another education source helping to curb the county's DUI crisis.
Many people receive court ordered education after their first DUI then continue to drive under the influence, according to Pearson.
"They should not be receiving another DUI at this point in time. They have the knowledge. If they go out and kill somebody ... they're going to be charged with second degree murder. That's 187, that's 15 years to life and I don't think that it's worth it," Pearson said.
"What we're finding is that the individuals that come through the office of Traffic Safety Unit are repeat offenders: five, six, seven, eight, maybe even 10 times. they've been in prison for DUI before. Education isn't really something that helps them because they don't care; it's a reckless type of crime," said Deputy District Attorney Garrett Rice.
Rice said the DA's office is overwhelmed with DUI cases and it's been that way for a while.
"It's definitely not decreasing. I know we have several officers with the BPD and CHP who have over 100 DUI arrests last year and that's one officer. So that gives you an idea of how many are out there," Rice said.
The message being shared is that everyone needs to look out for their neighbors, regardless if whether you know them personally, according to Rice.
But officials said they don't see this deadly crisis changing until society starts to view DUI's differently.
"If people start thinking 'Hey, if I don't do something, someone else could die,' then maybe they can get past that threshold of asking someone: 'Hey, can I give you a ride home? Can I call you a cab? Do you have a ride?' Or at least bring it to someone else's attention. Worst case, call 911," Rice said.
"Drunk driving does not have to happen. Drunk drivers do not have to do this. They can go out and partake and do whatever they'd like but they have to make a choice and a decision to get home safely," Pearson said.
According to MADD, every two minutes a person is injured in a drunk driving crash.
