Golf Car Options Magazine March 2020 GCOptions Mar20 MAGZTER | Page 16

c k y W o rL D
Wa
oF
s
f
G L C R
The
a
Drinking and driving your golf car may seem
commonplace within your community. It
may seem like no big deal. Golf cars have
four cup holders and coolers after all, so
why is golf car DUI getting any attention?
You may be wondering how the topic of
golf car DUI could possibly fill an entire
article. Or why I would even want to write
about it. I usually reserve my column for
light-hearted, fun golf car stuff like parades
and the best golf car communities. But,
after reading about an especially gruesome
incident of golf car DUI, I felt compelled to
get serious this month.
In 2017, a man who was visiting his parents
in their golf car community in Wildwood,
Florida borrowed his father’s golf car. He
went to a local bar and had several drinks.
He left the bar with a woman he met at the
bar and he planned to drive her home in his
golf car. As they were cruising down the
street, the woman fell off the golf car. The
man stopped and saw that she was injured
badly. He tried to lift her back onto the golf
car, but was unable. He then decided to
drag her to the median of the road and left
her in the bushes. He drove home. Thankful-
ly, someone saw her and called 911. Despite
16
WWW.GOLFCAROPTIONS.COM
Golf Car DUI -
It is
a Growing Problem
By Julie Starr, Owner
WHEELZ Custom Carts & Accessories
the medical attention she received, it was too
late and she died a few days later. The man was
charged with DUI.
A few days ago, a woman was sentenced to proba-
tion, a suspended license, and 50 hours of commu-
nity service after being arrested for DUI on her golf
car. She was driving her golf car in her community
at 1:30PM when she hit a curb four times in front of
a police officer. She failed a field sobriety test and
admitted to drinking alcohol.
Take 30 seconds to search “golf+cart+alco-
hol+death” in Google and you will see page after
page of senseless deaths and injuries caused by
golf car DUI. Each year, 15,000 people in the US
require emergency care following a golf car relat-
ed accident. That means that 41 people per day
across the country are involved in dangerous golf
car accidents that result in a trip to the ER. Most
of those accidents are alcohol related. Many of
the accidents involve children who were innocent
passengers.
Many people still feel that since golf cars are small
and slower than other vehicles on the road that its
okay to drive them while intoxicated. It’s not okay.
Driving under the influence is not legal anywhere
in the country. Technically, it is illegal to drive your