In response to William T. Stokes’ Jan. 8 letter, “Why the misplaced screams?” Stokes is correct that no one blames the car in a drunken driving (or other) accident. However, we do have some elements of car control in our legal system.
You cannot license the car until you have paid the sales tax and the car has passed the emissions test. In fact, you cannot maintain the car license unless the car continues to pass the emissions test. And there are categories of cars that cannot be licensed for street driving, e.g., cars that race in the Indy 500 or in Formula 1 races.
Furthermore, if the driver is convicted of DUI or other irresponsible driving activities, the driver’s license can be suspended. Driving on a suspended license is against the law.
Finally, some communities mandate a vehicle modification if the driver is convicted of DUI, i.e., an attachment that will not let the car start before the driver breathes into the device and demonstrates that they are not trying to drive drunk.
