International _Skrufff_ 17th May 2005
Cops Target Glastonbury Drug Drivers
British police are to launch a 'zero tolerance' anti-drug driving campaign at this year's Glastonbury Festival and will be aggressively targeting drivers who've taken pot, ecstasy or coke, the Independent reported this week.
Specially trained officers will be forcing suspect drivers to take mechanical tests such as standing on one leg without swaying and checking for dilated pupils, with busted revellers facing potential six year jail terms.
The campaign could cause problems for numerous drivers, certainly if the event matches the New York Times' description of bacchanalian scenes in 2003.
"When night fell, hordes of ecstasy-addled spectators came out to play," Times critic Neil Strauss declared, "The sight resembled a post-apocalyptic movie in which the dazed, tattered and unwashed wander among the ruined symbols of civilization."
The latest drug driving campaign comes three years after police adopted similar tactics at Gatecrasher's (now defunct) festival, following the deaths of five people in two crashes over two years. The worst incident occurred in 2000, when 20 year old Charlotte Frankham fell asleep at the wheel of her Ford Ka, causing a collision which killed all four passengers in a Volkswagen Polo also leaving the rave. The Grade A student was sentenced to two and a half years in jail after admitted taking one ecstasy pill and sleeping for just 4 hours within the preceding 42 hours.
Jonty Skrufff (Skrufff.com)
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