Impaired Driving Crashes in the News

7/4/22 Ronaldo Alberto Hernandez, 27, Norfolk

7/22/22 Melissa Holland, 21 and Christian Hernandez, 18, Rocky Mount

7/31/22 Casco Sierra, 21, Fairfax

8/2/22 Man Charged with DUI/Hit and Run in Death of Pedestrian

8/3/22 Gerald Will, 71, Rockingham County

8/5/22 Deputy Vehicle Struck by Intoxicated Driver

8/13/22 Brooke Shambeck,56, Prince William

8/13/22  Impaired Driver Kills Richmond Cyclist

8/20/22 Garrett Ross Clark, 32, Prince William

8/20/22 Drunk Driver with Kids in Car Hits Firetruck

8/21/22 Louin Coates, 65, Shenandoah County

8/22/22 Rosa Blanco, 76, Virginia Beach

8/23/22 Kaleb Johnson, 18, Buchanan County

Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over

The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles is proud to partner with WRAP’s Drive Sober Or Get Pulled Over campaign — formerly known as Checkpoint Strikeforce — to remind drivers of the dangers of impaired driving. We encourage you to share this year’s Drive Sober Or Get Pulled Over campaign materials through your social channels throughout the year.

You can find social media assets, including ready-to-post graphics and captions for Facebook and Twitter, in this toolkit.

The campaign message is simple: If you’re old enough to drink, act like it. Get a safe ride. We also encourage you to tag your posts with #ActLikeItVA. Please visit ActLikeIt.org for more information.

Thank you for your dedication to stopping impaired driving and saving lives in our communities!

National Teen Driver Safety Week

National Teen Driver Safety Week is coming up! From October 16 - 22, 2022, NHTSA will be highlighting teen driver safety on social media channels.

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for teens (15-18 years old) in the United States. In 2020, NHTSA reported that 4,561 drivers between the ages of 15 and 20 died in an alcohol-related crash.

Teens should NEVER drink, let alone drink and drive. You can talk to the teens in your life about making the right choices. MADD even has your back! Check out our Power of You(th) program for more information.

You can help promote safe driving for teens from October 16 - 22, 2022 on your social media channels by using these Rules for the Road resources. 

DMV Launches New Video Series to Promote Safe Driving

You wouldn't jump out of an airplane without buckling your parachute, so why would you drive a car without buckling your seat belt? That's a question posed in a new video from the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV).

It's part of a series of four spots that compare outrageous behaviors people would never combine – such as texting in the ring during an MMA fight – with just-as-dangerous behind-the-wheel activities people undertake every day, like texting while driving.

The "Safe Driving is Something We Can All Live With" series debuted on social media, streaming services, cable television, and video-equipped gas station pumps across the Commonwealth. Produced by NDP and Tilt Creative+Production in Richmond, the videos can also be viewed on DMV's YouTube page.

Topics covered include speed, drunk driving, and distracted driving prevention as well as seat belt safety.

"We wanted these videos to be funny to get people's attention, but the underlying message is very serious," said Acting DMV Commissioner Linda Ford, the Governor's Highway Safety Representative. "Crash deaths continue to rise on our roadways. Each of us can help change that by being a safe driver every time we get behind the wheel."

So far this year, 623 people have been killed in crashes on Virginia roadways.

Bentley’s Law

On April 13, 2021, in Jefferson County, Missouri, Cordell Shawn Michael Williams, 30, Lacey Newton, 25, and Cordell Shawn Michael Williams II, 4 months were hit in an alleged drunk driving crash. No one in their car survived the crash.

Devastated by the loss of her son, daughter-in-law, and grandson, Cecilia Williams knew she had to do something. She created an initiative called “Bentley’s Law,” named after her surviving grandson, whose family was killed in the crash.

First introduced in Missouri, the legislation requires drunk drivers who are convicted of killing a parent to pay child support to surviving minor children. Through Cecilia Williams’ tireless advocacy efforts, versions of Bentley’s Law are now being considered in more than a dozen states.

In fact, Tennessee is the first state to have passed the law. The Tennessee Legislature passed “Ethan’s, Hailey’s, and Bentley’s Law” on  April 20, 2022, which includes the names of the two surviving children of Tennessee Police Officer Nicholas Galinger, who was killed by a hit-and-run drunk driver. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed this legislation into law at a ceremony on July 7, 2022.

“Bentley's Law was created out of a tragedy that has affected the lives of two beautiful boys, Bentley and Mason, and the lives of our family,” Cecilia Williams said. “These crashes are totally preventable, and I will continue to fight for change for all who have suffered from impaired drivers. Many families like mine suffer such a loss every second of every day, and Bentley's Law will bring change to hold the offender accountable for such horrific actions.

You can make Bentley’s Law a reality in your state, too. Visit madd.org/BentleysLaw to ask your elected officials to support Bentley’s Law in your state.

L to R: Cordell Shawn Michael Williams, Cordell Shawn Michael Williams II, Lacey Newton

MADD Mid-Atlantic is happy to partner with the Virginia DMV to make this newsletter!