The Daily Tar Heel

Issue date: 4/8/08 Section: City

Media Credit: DTH/Kristin Wilson Lori Brown, development officer for Mothers Against Drunk Driving, speaks to DWI offenders at the Orange County Courthouse in Hillsborough.

First-time drunk drivers faced sobering stories and statistics Monday afternoon.

As part of their court sentences, many of those who receive DWIs are required to attend a Victim Impact Panel, sponsored by the N.C. chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

The meetings, held on the first Monday of every month at the Hillsborough courthouse, show drunk drivers the potential impact of drunken driving through the eyes of victims' families and friends.

"You're lucky you got caught," Lori Brown, a MADD state development officer, told the drivers. "You're lucky that all that happened was that you got pulled over and got a DWI."

Brown led the meeting with Barbara Blackburn, a victim assistance coordinator for MADD. Both emphasized that families of victims of alcohol-related accidents are the ones who suffer the most.

"It's hard to get your life back, and eventually you will, but it won't be the life you had before," Blackburn said.

Stacy Koon, who initiated Orange County's VIP, has first-hand experience with the effects of drunken driving. Her mother, Faye Coleman, was killed by a drunk driver in 2006.

"Mom was a 20-year employee with the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Education," Koon said. "It's just amazing the impact she had."

After their mother's death, Koon and her sister, Jill Woody, wanted drunk drivers to know the stories of past victims and offenders who were involved in accidents.

When they heard about other panels throughout the state, they decided to introduce a VIP here. The two women often attend the meetings to speak directly with offenders.

"We make sure that they understand the things that we miss," Koon said. "I need my mom every day.

"It's just letting them know how hard it is not to pick up the phone and call her."

Koon said she is careful not to judge any of the offenders.

"I think you have to get them in the right spot and get them to listen," she said. "If you come across condemning people, it's just going to put them on the defensive."

Brown said the stories Koon and others can tell help offenders understand the possible consequences of driving drunk.

"You all have been given a second chance," Brown said.

"You could have killed yourself, you could have killed someone else, someone could have lost limbs.

"Prepare yourself before it happens."



Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.

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