A West Virginia mother is working to make sure there are no more drunken driving tragedies like the one that took her daughter’s life.
Jody Miller’s daughter, 21-year-old Heather, was visiting her family in Wheeling in 2008 for spring break, about six weeks before she was set to graduate as a nurse from West Virginia University. Heather had already interviewed for a job at J.W. Ruby Memorial Hospital and had other interviews lined up.
“We were getting ready for her to embark on her lifelong dream of being a caregiver,” Miller said.
Then she went out with some friends and never came home.
Around 12:30 a.m. Miller’s doorbell rang and she answered to find deputies who couldn’t tell her what was going on, only that she needed to come with them.
“But you knew they don’t come to your door if there’s a minor injury,” Miller said.
Heather was partially ejected when the vehicle she was riding in rolled over into a hillside, Miller said. The car landed on top of her giving her the injuries that killed her after almost a week in the hospital.
Miller said she still deals with Heather’s death every day and she called Mothers Against Drunk Driving almost immediately, receiving support and guidance from a MADD advocate.
“I knew I wanted to part of the solution for my daughter’s sake as well as for all the other victims,” Miller said.
Part of that solution is using technology to stop not just drunk driving, but all kinds of impaired driving, Miller said.
The technology to do so already exists and could help save the almost 10,000 people a year who die in drunk-driving crashes.
For example, self-driving cars advertise that if you fall asleep, it can overcome the human error, Chief Government Affairs Officer for MADD Stephanie Manning said. Volvo also has technology that targets drunk driving.
“We don’t care how they solve the problem, we just need the Department of Transportation to review all existing technology and determine what’s best,” Manning said.
Stories like Heather’s and advocacy from those affected help to attach a face to the statistics, she said.
“All the stories are the same like mine,” Miller said. “Different faces but it’s all the same tragedy.”
Miller has had several interactions with Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., who also advocates for organ donation. Heather was an organ donor who was able to donate both kidneys, her liver, heart and 50 tissue samples.
Capito said, “Since my time in the House of Representatives, I have fought hard against drunk driving by working with constituents like Jody Miller and advocating for legislative solutions to address the problem. This is an issue I am passionate about, which is why I will continue to do everything I can to eliminate drunk driving in our nation. One of the ways we can do this is by implementing technologies that detect impaired driving— like the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety Program. Driving under the influence is a preventable crime, and we must do everything in our power to create a future where there are fewer DUI victims. I look forward to continuing working with my colleagues and others to eliminate drunk driving and save lives.”
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