Every state has laws against drunk driving, but New Jersey is the only state in the nation that has a law against driving while sleep deprived. Because the majority of the country has no laws about this, I feel that it leads many people to pass over how serious and dangerous it can be. This results in people not considering the fact that they're fatigued when they choose to drive somewhere, which puts themselves and other people on the road at risk. I think that one reason most of the states don't have any laws regarding this issue is due to the fact that sleep deprivation would be difficult to test or enforce, while BAC can be tested through a breathalyzer or blood test.
The law that New Jersey has put in place is called Maggie's Law; it was named after a 20-year-old who was killed by a driver who fell asleep at the wheel. It states that any driver who causes a fatality after being awake for 24 straight hours or more can be prosecuted for vehicular homicide. Although it is good that New Jersey has put a law into place, it seems hard to prove whether or not someone has been awake for 24 hours or more unless they decide to admit to it. Also, no prosecution can take place unless some sort of crash has occurred. Thankfully, many drunk drivers each day are pulled over and arrested before having the chance to cause serious damage on the road, either because they were driving recklessly or stopped at a check point. You don't really hear about sleep-deprived drivers getting pulled over and charged with anything unless their sleep-deprivation has resulted in an "accident."The President of the AAA Foundation, Peter Kissinger, stated, "Sleepiness decreases awareness, slows reaction time, and impairs judgement, just like drugs or alcohol" (Kotz, 2010). Many of the effects from fatigue are so similar to those of alcohol, but at the same time, identifying drivers who are intoxicated is easier than spotting drivers who are tired. It is unfortunate that many of these sleep-deprived people aren't noticed until after they have hit another car, run off the road, hit a tree, etc. It seems like there should be a better way to enforce not driving while sleep deprived, but for now we can just make sure to keep ourselves educated, aware, and smart about when we should and should not drive.
It is important to spread awareness and really emphasize to others the importance of not getting behind the wheel when tired. Many times people may not be aware of how tired they really are, so really becoming familiar with the warning signs of drowsiness is very crucial. I think there should be more commercials, advertisements, and programs devoted to educating and advocating for not driving while fatigued. It would also be beneficial to include more of this in driver education courses in order to inform new drivers about the seriousness of driving this way. Many deaths and injuries could have been prevented by just a simple choice of not to drive or of going to bed earlier. A lot of times people are just thinking about themselves and where they need to be, but effectively spreading awareness about this dangerous driving condition can hopefully work toward changing the choices people make.References
1. Kotz, D. (2010). Driving drowsy as bad as driving drunk. US News. Retrieved from http://health.usnews.com/health-news/family-health/sleep/articles/2010/11/08/driving-drowsy-as-bad-as-driving-drunk
2. Photo (top): http://blog.zenbedrooms.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/driving-whilst-tired.jpg
3. Photo (middle): http://www.fmcpestwire.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/DrowsyDriving.jpg
4. Photo (bottom): http://www.drivingcasualtiesdown.org/misc/fckeditorFiles/image/DfT%20Images/Tiredness.JPG
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