Taking Care of Ourselves & Each Other

Health & Well-Being

Stanford
Vaden Health Services

Drinking and Driving

No one can deny that drunk driving is a serious problem. In addition to legal consequences for drinking and driving, the real impact is to our Stanford community, friends and peers. Drunk driving breaks our community's trust. A drunk driving arrest on-campus is an automatic referral to the Office of Community Standards as a possible Fundamental Standard violation.

The Law considers intoxication to be a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) of .08% or more for those 21 years of age and older; for minors (under 21), the BAC limit is even lower: 0.01%. A first Driving Under the Influence (DUI) carries a variety of unpleasant consequences:

  • At least 48 hours in jail
  • $4 000-5000 in court costs, fines, and attorney fees
  • Suspension or revocation of your driver's license for 6 months, unless you're granted court probation-in which case you'll have at least a 90-day restricted license. Probation would last at least 3 years, subject to revocation if, during that time you drove with ANY measurable amount of alcohol in your bloodstream or committed ANY criminal offense.
  • Your car insurance will skyrocket
  • You will lose points on your driving record
  • You may have your car impounded

    There are plenty of alternatives to drinking and driving.
     
  • There is a 24-hour service called 5-SURE. Call 650.725.7873 from a non-University phone to get a ride by a super-deluxe golf cart anywhere on campus
  • The Marguerite, Stanford's free bus/shuttle also runs in the evenings
  • The time-honored techniques of designating a sober driver is a perennial favorite or taking the car keys away from a drinking friend who thinks he or she is "just fine, leave me alone!"

    Even when no clear alternative presents itself, the risks to life and limb, to yourself and others by drinking and driving are so staggering that it's more than worth it to simply stay put and sober up or walk home with someone.

    Our responsibility as Stanford students is formalized in the Fundamental Standard, and an incidence of drunk driving may be brought to a Judicial Panel that will likely assess penalties such as suspension, community service, and loss of driving privileges on campus.