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Man Charged with Providing Alcohol to a Minor in Fatal Salinas Drunk Driving Accident

A 41-year-old man has been charged with providing alcohol to a minor and contributing to the delinquency of a minor, who was involved in a fatal accident. Timothy McLaughlin is expected to be arraigned on 13 July on these charges, which could lead to a maximum sentence of one year in prison and a $2,500 fine.

On New Year’s Day, McLaughlin allegedly purchased beers with two teenagers just before a New Year’s party being held at his home. Early on New Year’s Day, one of the teenagers, Alexander Winn was driving with his friend Adam Arias when he lost control of his pickup truck. The truck flipped over, killing Arias instantly. Winn had just celebrated his 18th birthday less than a month before the accident. He pleaded guilty to gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, and received a sentence of probation and a year in county jail. As part of the sentence, he was also ordered to speak to youth groups about the dangers of driving under the influence. According to Winn’s attorney, there is security video footage showing McLaughlin buying the two teenagers beer.

Underage drinking is a major safety issue that concerns not just parents and communities, but also California car accident lawyers. In spite of laws that set 21 as the legally allowed age for drinking, underage drinking is rampant across our colleges and universities. California injury lawyers have always believed that parents and communities have a much bigger role to play in curbing underage drinking. There is only so much that law enforcement officers can do to enforce anti-DUI laws and underage drinking laws, and their efforts can be weakened when elders who are supposed to be responsible, fail to do their duty.

As parents, you can minimize the chances of your child being involved in a drunk driving accident by making the subject of driving under influence an open topic of discussion at home. Discussing safe driving topics should not be left for when there is a serious accident in your neighborhood or your family. Too many parents assume that when they are children get a license, they develop responsible driving behaviors on their own. These behaviors need to be developed, and parents can do much to ensure that their children grow up to become responsible safe drivers. Remember, providing alcohol to a minor is never a safe option.

According to the US Department of Transportation, in 2009, an average of 19 teenagers died each day in auto accidents. Teen drivers make up just about 3% of the total motorist population in the country, but account for more than 12% of all accident related fatalities. Teenagers have always been at a higher risk of drunk driving because of the pier pressure factor. Approximately 63 % of underage drinkers who were caught drinking, obtained the alcohol from a parent or a friend. That fact alone should concern California car accident attorneys. It’s clear that adults who should be more responsible are not respecting laws as they should be.

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of drunk driving accidents. Please visit our website at http://www.robertreeveslaw.com/. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us at contact@robertreeveslaw.com.

The Reeves Law Group is not representing any party in the matters discussed in this posting.

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