Middle Police Kick Off Drunk, Distracted Driving Campaign

COURT HOUSE – Two mothers shared their painful memories Oct. 3 in an effort to help Middle Township Police kick off their annual Put the Brakes on Fatalities campaign. 
Michelle Natale and Maureen Harden-Lozier both lost sons in the prime of their youth to substance-impaired drivers on township roads.
Eyes misted and tears flowed as the two women spoke of the sons they lost and their desire to do what they can to help prevent other families from experiencing the depth of loss that comes with such a tragic event.
On a summer afternoon in 2008, 20-year-old Craig Lozier was riding his motorcycle on Route 47 when Nicholas Golden, 18, a Philadelphia resident, crossed the line and struck him. Police alleged that Golden had been smoking marijuana just prior to the accident. In that moment the lives of two young men changed dramatically.
Lozier was killed in the collision and Golden, following a 2011 trial, was sentenced to nine years in state prison for aggravated manslaughter. At the trial, Lozier’s father spoke of “the life sentence without parole” imposed on his family.
Natale lost her son Jeffrey in 2014 after he was hit by a drunk driver also on Route 47. In this case, the driver, Stephen Carsten, 29, of Millville, died in the crash. Police reported that Carsten had a blood alcohol level three times the legal limit.
Natale speaks of having the doorbell chime changed because the old one reminded her of that fateful night every time it was used. She came to the kick off at police headquarters with a picture of Jeffrey which she took that morning from his bedroom. It is still “Jeffrey’s room,” she said. 
The two women, the only two in the room who knew each other’s pain, gave vivid evidence to the lasting grief imposed by bad judgments, momentary distractions, and poor reflexes experienced by all too many who still get behind the wheel of a car when they should not.
We all like to think we can fully empathize with a parent who lost a child in this way, but as Natale explained she could not know the depth of the loss until she experienced it.
She and Harden-Lozier had a long embrace in front of the police building at the end of the event, sharing a bond only those in their situation could fully understand.
In these two cases, mothers shared their grief but there is no doubt that grief visits the families of those who cause such accidents as well. “Life without parole” seems a high price to pay for a momentary look at the “all important text” or the extra drink you feel you can handle.
At 50 miles an hour, a car will cover 147 feet of pavement, more than a third of a football field, in the two seconds that it takes to look at a text. Speeding can result in reduced control and reflexes when confronted with the unexpected. A buzz can impact driving and influence judgments and reactions.
The fact that those who have done it before and come out OK is no predictor of the circumstances drivers will confront on any given trip.
Middle Township Police Capt. William Adams provided statistics to highlight the dangers. Nationwide there were over 35,000 traffic fatalities in 2015, a more than 7 percent increase over the year before. Of those fatalities, 562 occurred in the Garden State. The national numbers showed that one in three of those fatalities involved drunk driving or excessive speeding, while one in 10 involved some form of distracted driving. Almost half of those killed were not wearing seatbelts. 
In Middle Township, there were four fatal accidents in 2015 and three to-date this year. DWIs in the township rose to 78 in 2015 from 69 in 2014. So far this year, there have been 51 DWIs.
The statistics are real. The grief of the families left behind is real. The utter waste of life, often young life, is all too real. It is time to think about these things seriously.
The police ask all of us to think about the possible consequences before we let our bad judgment endanger us and others.
Drunk driving is still a major killer on the roads even with the negative social stigma that has been applied to it in recent years.
Cell phone use while driving and the ubiquitous resort to texting can be deadly, especially when widespread use puts more drivers and pedestrians at risk.
Penalties for distracted driving have increased, but the real answer is in education. Enforcement is important, but it will not by itself significantly reduce fatalities.
Two mothers, still very much in the grip of their loss, hope sharing their grief will help others think about the potential consequences of their actions and make better choices.
To contact Vince Conti, email vconti@cmcherald.com.