nd2010

I was riding my bike late at night when I saw a car going slow and weaving across the road, coming within a foot of hitting me. I suspected that the driver was drunk. We both stopped at the next red light and I knocked on the window. I could tell she was seriously intoxicated and I said that I was going to call the police with her license plate number. She then sobbed and begged me not to do so and even asked if I could drive her car home. She seemed scared and thought that driving home drunk was the only way for her to get home.
So I decided to do a good deed. I asked her to immediately stop the car and put the hazards on and give me the keys. I drove the car into the parking lot of the gas station right next to us, just to get it off the road. Then asked her to call her parents and say that she was driving drunk and ask for them to pick her up, all the while holding her car keys so she could not drive. I figured that her parents would get mad at her and that would scare her into never driving drunk, without the lifelong consequences of a DUI. Gave her the ultimatum "it's either your parents or the police".
I waited 20 minutes for her mom to show up, and she immediately hugged me, thankful that I was concerned for her daughter's safety. Of course, she was mad at her daughter as I had expected, and I hope she punished her.
I feel like I did a good deed, effectively getting a young drunk driver off the road. She got lucky that she had to deal with me, rather than getting pulled over, or worse, causing an accident.

BR46

RISKDR1

You very well may have saved her life or the life of someone else. And who knows, you may have changed her life path. Your act if kindness and caring (and that is what it was) changed the future.

plodderslusk

She was very lucky to meet someone like you !

rydabent

Good for you.

Mvcrash

Great job.

bikemig 

Good deed but I think drunk drivers should have to spend time in jail, go through mandatory counseling, and have their license yanked for a while. Sorry but I don't think having your mom get mad at you is going to cure this problem. I hope I'm wrong but there is a good chance she'll do it again.

10 Wheels

You took the correct action...Ride Safe.

Wanderer

Good for you! I hope it changes her decision making process.

rumrunn6

well done sir! who knows how many lives you may have saved, now and in the future!

spivonious

It's great what you did, but depending on the age of the driver, I wouldn't have given her the parents option. Drunk driving is serious business and sometimes a bit of jail time is the only deterrent that works.

jon c. 

well done

Jarrett2

Chris516

Let's see, whose life did you save:

1. Yours
2. Countless other motorists', pedestrians and cyclists' potentially on the road that night.
3. The drunk driver herself.
4. The 'agrivation' of the 'officers of the court'(judge, attorneys, bailiff) dealing with another DUI case
5. The funeral home from having to prepare a funeral casket for everyone that was killed by her drinking and driving(including her).
6. The newspaper from having to list her obituary as a result of her poor judgment.
7. All her family and friends having to take time to attend her funeral/wake. Also on account of her poor judgment.

So, Did you do a good deed.....Nah You just 'positively' affected countless thousands of lives in your locale, by that one simple act.

You did a GREAT deed!!

caloso

Well done.

Bm7b5

Awesome. You handled this so well. I would have just called the police, but I really like how you handled it.

Mark Stone

nd2010

She was 20 according to her driver's license, a college student home for winter break who was out partying with friends. For someone her age, the option of being punished by her parents would likely have a serious impact on her behavior. Why ruin her life by calling the police, especially since I could tell she regretted her decision to drive. Fortunately for herself and her family, she was so drunk that she was driving 20 mph in a 40 so I could easily catch up on my bike, and she listened to me despite not knowing me at all. I was angry and wanted to call the police right away, and would have done so if I didn't catch up.

So to follow up, her mom called me today to thank me again, and wanted me to come to her house so her daughter could apologize to me in person. She also told me that she had forbidden her daughter from driving until she graduates college. I suggested that she should give her daughter a bicycle for Christmas.

jimincalif

I really like how you handled this, well done! Calling the parents was brilliant, possibly even more effective than getting the law involved. Hopefully when she woke up sober she realized what a lucky break she got and will never do it again.

Matariki

Best Christmas present the girl will get this year.

nd2010

I was not letting her drive. And her parents had to know about it. If her parent's hadn't answered, I'd have stuffed my bike into the trunk and driven her to a police station.

BobbyG

You performed a real mitzvah! And it turned out well for you. Her parents could have been litigious jerks. Either way you still did the right thing.

PaulH

As they say -- that's the reason for the season.
Bravo Zulu!

B. Carfree

Are we allowed to have stories like this on A&S? How are we going to argue and fight?

Nicely done. I remember when I was about that age my parents told me that no matter the time, no matter the place, no matter how drunk/drugged I may be, if I needed to get home, or anywhere else, just call them or a cab. No questions asked (and the cab would be covered and well tipped.)

Now I hope someone has a chat with that young woman about personal safety and intoxication. The fact that she let a strange man take control of her car should be a wake-up call.

milkbaby

Good deed, good story, way to go!