Alcohol

Circuit Judge Luke K. Burns Jr. is expected to render his verdict today in the trial of a Westminster woman who is accused of manslaughter by auto in the death of a 9-year-old schoolgirl last year.After closing arguments Thursday, Burns said he wanted to take the weekend to study 58 exhibits and his 60 pages of notes before making his ruling in the trial of Lisa Ann McLain, 21, who also is accused of homicide by vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and other traffic charges.Ashley E. Frazier, a fourth-grader, was fatally struck in the 2500 block of Coon Club Road outside Westminster on Dec. 22.Burns spoke briefly to the family and friends of the victim and the defendant Thursday.

The entire undergraduate student bodies of the Johns Hopkins University and the U.S. Naval Academy combined. The population of Bel Air, according to the 2010 U.S. Census. The average attendance at a Hershey Bears hockey game (the highest in the AHL). Every one of those descriptions represents roughly 10,000 people. By any way of looking at it, that's quite a large crowd. It's also the same number of people who are killed each year in vehicle crashes involving alcohol-impaired drivers in this country.

Even moderate drinking before driving could become illegal if a federal safety panel's recommendation Tuesday is enacted eventually by the states. The National Transportation Safety Board recommended that states cut their thresholds for drunken driving by more than a third — from a blood-alcohol content of .08 percent to .05 percent — to reduce highway fatalities. A 180-pound man would reach 0.05 BAC by consuming three beers in one hour, according to a Wisconsin Department of Transportation online calculator.

Even moderate drinking before driving could become illegal if a federal safety panel's recommendation Tuesday is enacted eventually by the states. The National Transportation Safety Board recommended that states cut their thresholds for drunken driving by more than a third — from a blood-alcohol content of .08 percent to .05 percent — to reduce highway fatalities. A 180-pound man would reach 0.05 BAC by consuming three beers in one hour, according to a Wisconsin Department of Transportation online calculator.

Michael Thomas Truluck, 13, texted his family that he needed a ride home shortly before 6 p.m. Saturday. His mother said she saw nothing unusual in the request and sent her fiance to pick up Michael and two other boys, who had spent the afternoon together. "I knew he was hanging out with a bunch of friends, and there was nothing unusual about that," Kristina Keys said. "He texted and asked for a ride home. We picked him and two friends up. " Keys said she had no idea that his Saturday afternoon, which usually included lunch at a fast-food restaurant and hoops at Double Rock Park in Parkville, involved drinking an alcohol-laced energy drink, which an unidentified adult purchased for the pre-teens.

There is a product that can be found in many Anne Arundel County liquor stores that I believe is dangerous and a threat to anyone who mistakes it for a wine cooler.This product is a fortified wine, which has a labeled alcohol content of 20 percent by volume (40 proof). Wine coolers have an alcohol content that ranges from 4 percent to 7 percent. Regular table wines average about 12 percent alcohol.Fortified wine, or "Cisco," comes in five flavors: red, peach, orange, berry and gold. It is bottled in two sizes: 375 and 750 milliliters.

It is refreshing to see a politician admit his mistakes, take full responsibility for them and ask for forgiveness ("Dwyer admits to drinking in boating accident," Aug. 24). As they return to school this month, may our youth learn from the events of this past week - the teenagers who died in the Ellicott City train derailment and Del. Donald H. Dwyer's boating accident - that alcohol use compromises one's judgment. Benedict Frederick Jr., Pasadena

Two Georgia players were jailed early Saturday morning on alcohol-related charges less than a week after an embarrassing drunken driving arrest prompted university athletic director Damon Evans to resign. Dontavius Jackson , listed as a sophomore tailback, and sophomore split end Tavarres King were in a Chevrolet Avalanche stopped on a campus road just before 3 a.m., UGA Police Chief Jimmy Williamson said. Jackson, 20, was charged with driving under the influence, leaving the scene of an accident and other motor vehicle offenses.

Imagine a world where people drank tea or water or an occasional glass of wine…. Where teenagers, college students and their elders went out for dinner or conversation instead of going "out to drink…" Where drivers were sober and dates weren't passed out, not even knowing they were being raped…. Where jealousies might incite passions but wouldn't be fueled into murderous rages by alcohol… Will people ever learn to avoid drinking and its frequent escalation into being drunk, irresponsible, dangerous, unconscious, dead?

After reading " 'Dime-a-drink' tax will save lives, not kill jobs " (Feb. 22) by Messrs. Jernigan, Waters and Cook, I'm left wondering: If taxing alcohol will accomplish the two-pronged benefit of raising revenue for the state while curtailing abuse due to reducing consumption, why stop at 10 cents a drink? Why not double the tax? Or triple it? I'm not on the faculty of Johns Hopkins' Bloomberg School of Public Health, nor am I a professor of public policy at Duke University, but I did take logic in college and the writers' argument just doesn't hold water, beer or any other liquid.

What if you're doctor smoked marijuana and then performed surgery on you? Not a comforting thought, but it could happen. That is why two Johns Hopkins doctors and patient safety experts say hospitals should make alcohol and drug tests mandatory for physicians. The doctors shared their views in a commentary published online April 29 in The Journal of the American Medical Association. They say doctors should also be tested if a patient dies suddenly or is unexpectedly injured during surgery.

Baltimore County police on Monday identified two people who died when the driver of a 2013 Ford Mustang flipped the vehicle on Route 40, near Martin Boulevard early Sunday. Emil Antonio Ledesma Vargas, 29, of the 300 block of Endsleigh Avenue, and Josseline Rico-Hernandez, 25, of the 9700 block of Matzon Road, both in Middle River, were pronounced dead at the scene. A third passenger, a 25-year-old male, was taken to Johns Hopkins Bayview Hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

A Baltimore man whom police say appeared to be under the influence of alcohol was hit by a car and killed as he walked along Philadelphia Road in Joppa late Tuesday evening. The accident happened around 8 p.m. on Philadelphia Road (Route 7) between Mountain Road (Route 152) and Clayton Road, according to a Maryland State Police press release. Troopers said Jack Franklin Watson, 61, of the 2000 block of Frames Road in Baltimore, was walking in the westbound traffic lane of Philadelphia Road east of Mountain Road, wearing dark, non-reflective clothing, according to the release.

Alcohol consumption has a long and storied association with college life, much of it not good. The degree to which that association is promoted at Harford Community College is a matter of substantial public concern. Though the discussions are very preliminary, there's talk of asking the local delegation to the Maryland General Assembly to establish a special class of liquor license that would be appropriate for the new APGFCU Arena on campus at HCC. The arena is the largest public venue in Harford County, with seating for in excess of 3,000 people, depending on the type of event.

In response to a 2010 Youth Commission Survey, in which 49 percent of youth in grades six to 12 indicated they feel strongly that alcohol and drug abuse educational program and initiatives are needed, the Harford County Department of Community Services launched the new prevention program, Above the Influence Alcohol and Drug Education Program, in January. The Above the Influence Alcohol & Drug Education Program was attended by eight Harford County youth. The morning portion of the program focused on alcohol education and featured a victim impact speaker, a discussion on the effects of alcohol and drug use on the family, as well as some interactive activities.

Two state troopers were injured on the side of Interstate 95 in Laurel early Friday morning when their patrol car was struck by another vehicle being driven by a drunken driver, Maryland State Police said. Shortly after midnight, troopers Manuel Moreno, 42, and John Cabrera, 34, had just activated flares warning oncoming traffic of an unrelated accident on the highway near Sandy Springs Road when they returned to their patrol car - which had its lights flashing - to complete paperwork.

There are may lessons to be learned from the case of George Huguely and Yeardley Love ("Teammates saw signs of trouble, but failed to act," Feb. 10). Among them is that alcoholism and aggression are real issues that need to be addressed. We all know that alcohol changes the brain, causing some to react in violent ways. For those with prior anger issues, the violence likely intensifies with the addition of alcohol and other substances. Mr. Huguely had consumed 15 drinks on the day of the incident, and other testimony suggests he suffered from anger issues.

Regarding Maryvale Preparatory School's mandatory alcohol education program ("At Maryvale Prep, alcohol education comes before prom," May 24), anything that can help make sure these seniors are safe now that they are almost in college is a good thing. College parties will present them with increased peer pressure and risky activities, but knowing what choices are the right choices is powerful knowledge for a teen. That could make the difference in putting them in a situation where they or a friend gets injured or in trouble.

Twenty-seven Tufts men's lacrosse players will be suspended for two games this season after "unacceptable behavior," including racist and sexist insults, at a women's volleyball game against Smith College last semester, the Tufts Daily student newspaper has reported. An external investigation was launched by the school's Office of Equal Opportunity after a student accused the players of "calling out sexist and racist insults that disparagingly referenced the Smith players by name and threatened them during the game" Sept.

Del. Don H. Dwyer Jr., who faces alcohol-related charges in a powerboat crash off Pasadena that injured him and six others last August, has been moved off the House committee that handles legislation involving drunken driving and boating. Dwyer, an Anne Arundel County Republican,  said House Speaker Michael E. Busch reassigned him to the Ways and Means Committee. He previously served on the Judiciary Committee. New House committee assignments are expected to be announced Friday.