”Every 15 Minutes”
A Niagara Falls Youth Court Presentation
“Every 15 Minutes”, is a drinking and driving prevention program directed at high school seniors. This emotionally charged program offers real-life experience to dramatically instill and demonstrate the potentially deadly consequences of driving under the influence of alcohol. “Every 15 Minutes” demonstrates the wide-ranging impact which alcohol related car crashes; have on high school students, their family and the community as a whole.
Day 1
The first day begins and every 15 minutes the Grim Reaper removes designated students from their class. Once the student is removed from class a Police Officer enters the class and reads an obituary, which has been written by the “dead” students parents. A few minutes later the student will return to class as the “living dead,” complete with white face make-up and a black “Every 15 Minutes” t-shirt. From that point on “victims” will not speak or interact with other students for the remainder of the school day. This process proceeds throughout the day. During the middle of the day a simulated car crash will be staged in the school parking lot off the gym. The crash contains four students, a drunk driver and three victims. The entire senior class will witness the aftermath of the crash. This student will have first hand experience of being involved in a tragic alcohol related fatal accident. Police Officers, Fire Fighters and EMTs arrive on the scene as in reality! Police Officers check the scene; Fire Fighters and EMTs take care of the victims, including extricating the driver of the second vehicle with the Jaws of Life. The Police perform field sobriety tests and then arrest the student “drunk driver” for DWI and vehicular homicide. Rural Metro will transport the passenger from vehicle two to Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center for treatment.
Day2
The second day begins with the “designated dead students” being transported to Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center. The victim’s parents/guardians will be notified to come to the emergency room. The victim will expire in the emergency room. They will then go to a local funeral home. They will meet with the parents/guardians of the victim and representatives of the funeral home to plan the funeral of the victim. They will then go to the Niagara Falls Police Headquarters where the drunk driver from Monday will be “booked.” After the police station the students return to Niagara Falls High School where they will get back into make-up and prepare for an assembly in the Performing Arts Center. There will be a funeral possession, including a closed casket, with a slide show of the “Dead” while Taps is being played. Speakers will talk about their real life experience in alcohol related accidents. They will discuss the effects of drinking and driving as well as the devastation caused by losing a loved one due to one bad decision. A few selected students will be given the opportunity to read their goodbye letters. The focus of the assembly stresses that the decision to consume alcohol can affect many more people than just the one who drinks. This extremely emotional event illustrates to students the potentially dangerous and tragic consequences of their use of alcohol; regardless of how casual they believe their use may be.
A Drinking & Driving Diversion Program
Niagara Falls Youth Court
4455 Porter Road, NFNY 14305
(716) 286-7038