This law is needed; we lost our son
from a drunk driver in 2004 who was claimed he was tired (3am accident).
hrboney@yahoo.com
Sleepless in New Jersey -- it could make you a criminal
· By: Staff
· Date: 2003-09-07
Comments (16) Join conversation
New Jersey's new sleep and driving law means that the 24 million or so Americans who work in extended hours jobs had better beware of sleep deficit. "Maggie's Law," as it's called, was passed in June, 2003, and makes it illegal to knowingly drive a vehicle while impaired by lack of sleep. Other states will now likely consider such legislation.
By laying out a specific rule about driving and fatigue the New Jersey law attempts to make it easier to lay criminal charges against a driver who kills or injures someone due to falling asleep at the wheel. However, the law could have important liability implications for companies that are deemed to have pressured drivers into pushing the limits of fatigue in order to meet the demands of delivery schedules.
Maggie's Law originated in 1997, from a traffic crash in which 20-year-old Maggie McDonald was killed when a driver crossed three lanes of traffic and hit her car head on. The driver admitted he had been awake for 30 hours before the accident, and had also been using drugs. In the ensuing trial, the Jury deadlocked 9 to 3 on a conviction. At a second trial, the defense argued there was no law in New Jersey against falling asleep at the wheel. The judge did not allow the jury to consider the driver's sleep deprivation and he received a suspended jail sentence and a $200 fine.
"This is the first law of its kind in the U.S.," says the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), and it commends the state for its initiative. "Maggie's Law should pave the way for other states to take a serious look at sleep deprived drivers by passing similar legislation and implementing aggressive educational programs," states the NSF.
Whether Maggie's law succeeds in reducing fatigue-related crashes in New Jersey remains to be seen. It certainly opens the way for an expensive process of passing similar laws in other states. However, as the NSF points out, a survey it conducted in 1998 showed that in all states except Alabama, people can be charged under existing laws for causing a crash or fatality after falling asleep at the wheel.
Overlawyered.com referred to the legislation as the "Let's criminalize everything dept."
"It is nicknamed "Maggie's Law" after the victim of one such collision, thus confirming the truism that any enactment tagged with the given name of some recent victim ("Megan's Law", etc.) will combine sentimentality of intent with harshness of result," states the Overlawyered.com web site.
Necessary or not, Maggie's Law could have broad implications for the trucking industry. "Under the new law" states insurancejournal.com, "a sleep deprived driver who causes an accident, after being awake for more than 24 hours, can be convicted of vehicular homicide. The law raises the specter of corporate liability in cases of drowsy employees who work long hours, high amounts of overtime, double-shifts, or even 24-hour on-call periods at their employer's request."
There has already been a steady increase in driver accident fatigue legislation, states InsuranceJournal.com. "For extended hours employers in New Jersey and surrounding states, Maggie's Law increases the risk of corporate liability should an employee cause a fatal drowsy driving accident," it adds.
The US Department of Transportation identifies fatigue as the number one safety problem in transportation operations, costing over $12 billion a year. Sleepy drivers are as much a danger as alcohol impaired drivers, says the U.S. National Highway traffic Safety Administration. Two recent Australian studies demonstrate that being awake for 18 hours produces impairment equal to a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.05% and 0.1% after 24 hours; 0.08% is considered legally drunk.
According to National Sleep Foundation polls, more than half of America's drivers
(over 100 million people) admit to driving while drowsy, and nearly two out
of five say they actually fell asleep at the wheel.
Comments
robert boney, on Monday, 22. October 2007 at 03:26 PM
D Hyde, on Thursday, 25. October 2007 at 11:51 AM
My Dad and brother were killed Oct 2. The lady who hit them head on stated to the state patrol officer that she fell asleep. Please, don't drive sleepy! My nephew is 11 months old, and is now without his father and grandfather. Not to mention the losses that are felt within our family and community.
S. Avedikian, on Monday, 19. November 2007 at 02:57 PM
My husband was almost killed by a young man who worked for the studios and FELL ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL. No one will claim responsibility
I wish there was someone out there who could help bring justice to the general population. Employeers need to be STOPPED.
Kathy Humphries, on Wednesday, 19. March 2008 at 01:35 PM
On January the 17,2008 My 10 year old nephew left for school.He never returned home.A driver whom claims that he fell asleep has never been charged with this crime They say his biggest punishment is that he has to live with this. Yea right he is still here. He struck my nephew so hard he was knocked out of his shoes and they found his arm under the mans truck not counting half of his face was gone.This is what we the victums live with every day .I will not rest until this law is passed in Maryland If you are from Maryland and want to join the fight contact me at davidmrdgray@aol.com We will have the law passed to have these people pay for there crimes.
Nate, on Saturday, 12. April 2008 at 09:51 PM
This law, and the people pushing it are absurd... Accidents happen. Treating someone like a criminal for such a thing is beyond unethical and completely irrational. I understand the pain of losing a loved one, but treating good people like criminals is crazy, and frankly scary.
Connor, on Monday, 14. April 2008 at 04:14 PM
"Accidents happen" is absurd. The vast majority of so-called accidents are preventable. In the trucking industry the low cost of transportation is borne by the driver, who is pushed into longer and longer hours to make a living. Fallign asleep is a big problem for drivers and now they have to be careful.
For the rest of us, we don't take fatigue and driving seriously enough, and we forget that eating sugary foods can cause sleepiness and worse, if you lack sleep, even one alcoholic drink can be a major problem.
Maybe Maggie's law will make us take this seriously.
Mike Jackson, on Monday, 19. May 2008 at 01:22 AM
I too am sick of preventable accidents, especially those caused by mothers distracted by their children in the car. We should pass a law and these people should be locked up in prison. That is justice for their innocent victims.
Donna, on Saturday, 24. May 2008 at 08:13 PM
This law IS absurd. I would think that lumping all sleepy drivers together in criminal intent would downplay horrible details involved in any given case. In Maggie's accident, the man was awake for 30 hours with illegal drugs in his system. How can it be possible that anyone wants the same punishment for this dirt bag as a 20-year old driving back to college two hours away at 3:00am for exams and becomes tired at the wheel??? Shouldn’t the punishment be based on details surrounding the case, not just being a “drowsy driver”?
With gas/food/utility prices on the rise, people are getting 2 - 3 jobs just to make ends meet. Are we really feeling the need to punish them further by forcing them choose between making money or getting more sleep?
In addition, what type of standard are we going to support to decide whether someone did not have enough sleep? Is there a measurement that we are getting in place, or are we just going to prosecute anyone not having “8 hours of sleep”? How are we going to enforce this measurement? Is there scientific evidence to suggest how many hours of sleep someone has had, or are we just going to go by the, as you call it, “criminal’s” word?
Furthermore, good luck finding that ONE driver whom has NEVER yawned while driving to or from work, school, or any other function.
My intent is not to be a heartless woman, however, I am trying to be realistic. I would imagine I would be devastated if this situation happened to me, but I can't see myself ever wanting to punish a "drowsy driver" by putting them in prison with a gun-totting, gang-banging, drug-selling monsters without taking into consideration any other aspect of the case other than he/she was sleepy.
MIchelle Fenske, on Thursday, 04. September 2008 at 02:52 PM
Donna- Heartless
Right know I am so up set to read your comment.
On 8/11/08 my son Blake age 8, daughter Makaela age 9, and my father-in-law Howard were on their way to Colorado for the yearly family trip driving west bound. At 4:15 a.m. a woman heading east bound fell asleep at the wheel crossing the mediam went air bound and landed on top of my Howard's truck and continued to travel another 200 feet before stopping.
As the result of her choice not to sleep for 19 hours (which she admitted) my 8 year son Blake and father-in-law Howard were killed. I will never see my son grow-up and enjoy all the things a mother/father should. The driver (killer) is still alive to live her life enjoy her holiday with family and be able to grow old.
In the mean time....My husband and I have to comfort my other children from their nightmares, tears, and loss of weight. Them wanting a new a new home, not wanting to attend school etc.
So in Maggie's law the driver should have been charged for drugs and sleepless.
However miss heartless....YOU HAVE A CHOICE AND YOU KNOW WHEN YOU ARE TIRED. Just as you have a choice to drink and drive. People need to be responsible for their choices. There is a difference from yawn vs driving all day and night. There is a difference when you had a bad nights sleep and tired heading to work or school.
The difference is when you are nodding your head, rolling down your window for fresh air, turning up the radio to avoid falling asleep....THEN YOU SHOULD NOT BE DRIVING!!!
So...I would rethink your statement and you will never know or understand until you receive a phone call and have to go to the hospital and hold your cold lifeless child in your arms.
Choice..........
Michelle Fenske, on Monday, 08. September 2008 at 05:32 PM
Sorry reader(s)...I was so upset over Donna's comments I mad many grammar errors. So, I rewrote my thoughts.
Donna- Heartless
Right now, I am so upset to read about your comment.
On 8/11/08 my son Blake age 8, daughter Makaela age 9, and my father-in-law Howard were on their way to Colorado for the yearly family trip. They were heading west bound. At 4:15 a.m. a woman heading east bound fell asleep at the wheel crossing the median went air bound and landed on top of my Howard's truck and continued to travel another 200 feet before stopping.
As the result of her choice not to sleep for 19 hours (which she admitted) my 8 year old
Son Blake and father-in-law Howard were killed. I will never see my son grow-up and enjoy all the things a mother/father should. The driver (killer) is still alive to live her life enjoy her holiday with family and be able to grow old.
In the mean time, my husband and I have to comfort my other children from their nightmares, tears, and loss of weight. Them wanting a new a new home, not wanting to attend school etc.
Therefore, in Maggie's law the driver should have been charged for drugs and sleepless.
However, miss heartless...YOU HAVE, A CHOICE AND YOU KNOW WHEN YOU ARE TIRED. Just as you have a choice to drink and drive. People need to be responsible for their choices. There is a difference from yawn vs. driving all day and night. There is a difference when you had a bad night’s sleep and tired heading to work or school.
The difference is when you are nodding your head, rolling down your window for fresh air, turning up the radio to avoid falling asleep....THEN YOU SHOULD NOT BE DRIVING!!!
Therefore, I would rethink your statement and you will never know or understand until you receive a phone call and have to go to the hospital and hold your cold lifeless child in your arms.
Choice..........
wizard, on Sunday, 28. September 2008 at 02:29 AM
To michelle fenske:
Okay, since you're trying to get us to put yourself in your shoes, how about trying to put yourself in ours? Try working as a doctor (a resident) for 24 hours straight, where you are expected not only to stay awake for all that time, but also make life-and-death decisions. Why don't you try telling your story to our attending physicians and hospital administrators? See if they try to cut our hours then, so we can get home and actually get some sleep, and we won't have to worry about causing an accident and getting drawn and quartered by people like you after we have worked harder and longer than you have in your entire life. My guess is that you're a bank teller or some other worker who only has a nine-to-five job with frequent breaks, and therefore doesn't understand.
Connor, on Sunday, 28. September 2008 at 06:49 AM
looks like wizard thinks its OK to drive sleepy just because your working life or pay scale demands it. So a life (or more) could be sacrificed so Wizard can keep working under poor conditions ...hmmmmm - am I the only one who sees a problem with that?
wizard, on Sunday, 28. September 2008 at 02:53 PM
To connor:
Yeah, you have a solution to that? To residents, the 24-hour shift is a cakewalk compared to what it used to be. Before that, residents were expected to work 36 hours straight. So if you don't want us to drive home sleepy, then why don't YOU try to speak up about our working conditions so we don't have to drive home sleepy? If us residents tried that, we would be blacklisted as complainers at work and possibly even fired.
Connor, on Monday, 29. September 2008 at 05:01 PM
OK Wizard you got a point. What do I need to do to support you?
Thanatos, on Wednesday, 22. October 2008 at 11:21 AM
Wizard-
Your job as a doctor is to SAVE lives - not take them. Your arrogance is unbelievable. Just because you make a lot of money as a doctor does not make you any better than anyone else. You're not the only one who works hard for a living. There is a huge problem with the professional hazing that occurs with the ridiculous hours that medical interns and residents have to put in. It is slowly changing state by state. But YOU have a CHOICE. If you are that tired, then instead of immediately going home, take a nap at the hospital. Or call someone to come and get you. Or take a cab with the big bucks that you make that makes you better than everybody else. And for you to attack Michelle who has lost her son and her father-in-law to a drowsy driver is unforgivable. Some doctor you're going to be! Oh - and one more thing. If you're so darned tired, why are you wasting time posting comments about this at 2 in the morning? Get some sleep.
Michelle Fenske, on Thursday, 13. November 2008 at 10:58 AM
Wizard....
After the long working hours, do you have to get in a car and drive? Could you take a taxi, bus, ride a bike or car pool? There are answers to your lack of sleep. Today, so many people find excuses vs. doing what is right. It may be harder to make the right choice, but if it could save a life….then, it is worth it. Especially, since that is your line of work.
Look …until something like this happens to you (losing a loved one - especially a child), you will never know the pain one suffers. When you have to go to the hospital to identify your eight-year-old son’s body, it will affect your life forever. The last image of my son is with his head cut open from side to side. Looking at his left side of his face and only seeing raw flesh and blood. Looking at his little body and grieve for the future I will no longer have with my son. To set the table with one less plate, to celebrate holidays by going to his gravesite, to hear no more laughter…..is the hardest thing in the world. Wizard, Blake too wanted to help others. He wanted to join the military and become a doctor to save lives. If he was alive and have the opportunity as you have….I bet he would not be complaining about the hours. Blake would have been honored to make a difference and save a life! So please make a difference it starts with just one person. Will it start with you?
