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American Morning
Shamed Into Safety
Aired September 26, 2003 - 07:46 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: You could call it the scarlet letter of crime and punishment. A judge in Florida is making some convicted drunk drivers put bumper stickers on their cars that say, "How's my driving?" Followed by a toll-free number and the statement, "The judge wants to know." You see it there.
David Richbourg is a spokesman for the group that pushed for this sticker program. It's called the I Saw You Safety & Scholarship Foundation, and he joins us live now from Pensacola.
Welcome.
DAVID RICHBOURG, I SAW YOU SAFETY & SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION: Good morning.
COSTELLO: What's the purpose of these bumper stickers?
RICHBOURG: Well, the purpose, we hope, the judges and our foundation hopes that these decals will be a tremendous deterrent. We know that two-thirds of all of the DUI arrests in this country are first-time convictions. One out of every 130 drivers in this country is arrested annually for DUI or impaired driving. It calculates out to 1.4 million arrests per year.
COSTELLO: But these bumper stickers would be placed on the car after these drunk drivers have already either served time or paid a fine or something like that, right?
RICHBOURG: Yes, but knowing the brand of the bumper sticker, the decal, the awareness of it, and knowing that if you drink and drive, your chances of being sentenced to this are quite likely. We hope that it will be such a deterrent that people will not drink and drive.
COSTELLO: Well, David...
RICHBOURG: They can drink...
COSTELLO: Well, David, in looking...
RICHBOURG: Yes.
COLLINS: In looking at the bumper sticker, nowhere on it does it say "DUI." Why not?
RICHBOURG: Well, we thought about that, and we worked with some of the judges on that and some of our focus groups. But the judges want to use this decal for other alcohol and drug-related offenses. So, we thought that the red would just signify an offender in the drug and the alcohol arena.
COSTELLO: I'm asking this because, you know, you see such bumper stickers or some type of bumper sticker on the backs of trucks, and you see the toll-free number to call.
RICHBOURG: Right.
COSTELLO: And might people be confused by this? I mean, how am I, as just Joe citizen, going to know what the heck that means?
RICHBOURG: Well, in the 18-wheeler trucks, the insurance companies instigated that in the beginning, and those decals reduced accidents in professional truckers...
COSTELLO: But, I mean...
RICHBOURG: ... by over 50 percent.
COSTELLO: But I mean, these decals, how am I to know that that's a convicted drunk driver when that decal is on his car.
RICHBOURG: Well, I think we're the only program that I've heard of in the country that says "The judge wants to know." Our teen driver decals say, "My parents want to know." The professional truckers just have a number. It doesn't say who wants to know. This program, I believe, is the only one in the country that has on the decal, "The judge wants to know."
COSTELLO: All right, David Richbourg, many thanks to you for joining AMERICAN MORNING. And we hope it keeps drunk drivers off the road.
RICHBOURG: Thank you very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired September 26, 2003 - 07:46 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: You could call it the scarlet letter of crime and punishment. A judge in Florida is making some convicted drunk drivers put bumper stickers on their cars that say, "How's my driving?" Followed by a toll-free number and the statement, "The judge wants to know." You see it there.
David Richbourg is a spokesman for the group that pushed for this sticker program. It's called the I Saw You Safety & Scholarship Foundation, and he joins us live now from Pensacola.
Welcome.
DAVID RICHBOURG, I SAW YOU SAFETY & SCHOLARSHIP FOUNDATION: Good morning.
COSTELLO: What's the purpose of these bumper stickers?
RICHBOURG: Well, the purpose, we hope, the judges and our foundation hopes that these decals will be a tremendous deterrent. We know that two-thirds of all of the DUI arrests in this country are first-time convictions. One out of every 130 drivers in this country is arrested annually for DUI or impaired driving. It calculates out to 1.4 million arrests per year.
COSTELLO: But these bumper stickers would be placed on the car after these drunk drivers have already either served time or paid a fine or something like that, right?
RICHBOURG: Yes, but knowing the brand of the bumper sticker, the decal, the awareness of it, and knowing that if you drink and drive, your chances of being sentenced to this are quite likely. We hope that it will be such a deterrent that people will not drink and drive.
COSTELLO: Well, David...
RICHBOURG: They can drink...
COSTELLO: Well, David, in looking...
RICHBOURG: Yes.
COLLINS: In looking at the bumper sticker, nowhere on it does it say "DUI." Why not?
RICHBOURG: Well, we thought about that, and we worked with some of the judges on that and some of our focus groups. But the judges want to use this decal for other alcohol and drug-related offenses. So, we thought that the red would just signify an offender in the drug and the alcohol arena.
COSTELLO: I'm asking this because, you know, you see such bumper stickers or some type of bumper sticker on the backs of trucks, and you see the toll-free number to call.
RICHBOURG: Right.
COSTELLO: And might people be confused by this? I mean, how am I, as just Joe citizen, going to know what the heck that means?
RICHBOURG: Well, in the 18-wheeler trucks, the insurance companies instigated that in the beginning, and those decals reduced accidents in professional truckers...
COSTELLO: But, I mean...
RICHBOURG: ... by over 50 percent.
COSTELLO: But I mean, these decals, how am I to know that that's a convicted drunk driver when that decal is on his car.
RICHBOURG: Well, I think we're the only program that I've heard of in the country that says "The judge wants to know." Our teen driver decals say, "My parents want to know." The professional truckers just have a number. It doesn't say who wants to know. This program, I believe, is the only one in the country that has on the decal, "The judge wants to know."
COSTELLO: All right, David Richbourg, many thanks to you for joining AMERICAN MORNING. And we hope it keeps drunk drivers off the road.
RICHBOURG: Thank you very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
