Porter, Berkley join forces against DUI

Friday, Nov. 19, 2004 | 9:47 a.m.

SUN WASHINGTON BUREAU

WASHINGTON -- Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., and Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., helped launch a pre-holiday drunken driving education campaign Thursday.

The two lawmakers said that as representatives of the "entertainment capital of the world" they felt a responsibility to lead a campaign that aims to further educate people about the dangers of drunken driving. The political opposites are paired as co-leaders of the Stop DUI Caucus in Congress, organized earlier this year.

Berkley also spoke as a mother of 19- and 22-year-old sons.

"I know how hard it is to convince kids that they're not invincible," she said.

The two lawmakers were featured at a press conference today organized by The Century Council, a national coalition funded by distillers. The council is dedicated to educating people about how alcohol, gender, weight and other factors affect their blood-alcohol levels. The council serves as an adviser to Congress on drunken driving.

Porter has a personal interest. In 1999, his then-teenage daughter Nicole struck a drunken driver who pulled into her path and stopped as she was driving to Green Valley High School. Her car was totaled. She still suffers from a jaw injury she received in the accident, Porter said.

"It's a miracle she is alive," Porter said. "From that perspective, this issue hits very close to home."

This year Delaware became the last state to adopt a 0.08 legal limit. But a council-sponsored survey two years ago found that seven in 10 people don't know their state's legal limit.

The council reported that 622 people died in alcohol-related accidents during last year's winter holidays -- nearly half the roadway deaths during that time.