Latest news with #MADD
Yahoo
17-07-2025
- Yahoo
Vikings receiver Jordan Addison pleads to lesser charge in DUI case, still faces NFL suspension
Minnesota Vikings receiver Jordan Addison will not face a DUI charge stemming from a July 2024 arrest after pleading to a lesser offense referred to as a "wet reckless," according to his agent. Addison was set to face a jury trial on the charge this week, but will now serve 12 months of probation. However, Addison will still likely face discipline from the NFL for the incident that includes a suspension, probably for three games. "Wet reckless" (or "wet and reckless") is a term for a reckless driving charge that notes alcohol and/or drugs were involved in an incident. But the charge carries a lesser penalty than a DUI and does not include a mandatory driver's license suspension. "As a result, Mr. Addison will pay a standard fine and complete two online courses after which we expect that his probation will be terminated early in six months," Addison's agent, Tim Younger, explained on social media. "Over the past year, he voluntarily participated in MADD [Mothers Against Drunk Driving] events and programs and, after reflection, decided to enter this plea understanding the ramifications of this decision," he continued. Addison, 24, was arrested on suspicion of DUI on July 12, 2024 after being caught "asleep behind the wheel," according to the original California Highway Patrol arrest report. A white Rolls-Royce was stopped and blocking a freeway lane near Los Angeles International Airport. Addison was asleep when officers arrived on the scene. A three-game suspension has been the NFL's standard penalty for DUI cases, even if the player was not convicted. Addison's "wet reckless" plea is an acknowledgement that he was indeed under the influence when arrested. Last season, Addison caught 63 passes for 875 yards and nine touchdowns. He appeared in 15 games, limited at the beginning of the 2024-25 campaign with an ankle injury.
CTV News
02-07-2025
- CTV News
Ottawa family speaks out ahead of sentencing in fatal drunk driving crash
Hal Tierney who was killed by a drunk driver just before his 59th birthday in February 2023. (Katelyn Wilson/ CTV News). It's been more than two years since Hal Tierney was hit and killed by a drunk driver on Fallowfield Road in Ottawa's west-end while on his way home from work. On Thursday, the driver Max Breton, is scheduled to be sentenced. Tierney's family is speaking publicly about the brother, father and friend they lost. 'Hal was very special to my mom. She misses him terribly,' said his sister, Tanya Sterling. 'He loved tinkering, he liked putting around his hobby farm and fixing things. He was just a great guy. He had tons of friends. Generous to a fault almost.' Tierney, a 58-year-old father of three, was hit and killed in February 2023 just kilometers from his home right before his 59th birthday. Sterling says multiple 911 calls were made in the hours leading up to the crash that claimed her brother's life. Breton pleaded guilty this past March. 'He made us wait two years for him to admit to killing our brother,' she said. 'In those two years, he enjoyed freedom. We have not. He has to suffer some consequences for this and I hope, I pray, that he does.' Since her brother's death, Sterling has started volunteering with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), sharing her story and helping to educate others about the devastating impacts of impaired driving. Valerie Keys, president of MADD's Ottawa chapter, says awareness is critical but so is accountability. 'We would like to see more prison time for serious offenses such as bodily harm, property damage and of course, killing somebody,' said Keys. 'I don't know what's going to happen with this particular case, but the more people know that this penalty is serious, the better. We would like to see that well understood.' MADD continues to advocate for tougher sentences, hoping to prevent more families from facing the kind of loss Sterling and her family now live with every day. 'It just sticks with you,' Sterling said. 'It's something you'll never forget.' Although Tierney is gone, his memory lives on through his three children, his family, and the countless photos that capture the man who they say lit up every room.
CTV News
25-06-2025
- CTV News
‘It can happen': MADD uses flipped car as visual reminder of impaired driving for summer campaign
A crashed car adorned with the painted words 'Don't Drive Impaired' sits flipped over on the side of the road in Nisku near Blackjack's Roadhouse on Wednesday. It marks the launch of the annual campaign by Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Edmonton, which hopes the car will remind drivers to not drive impaired and help save lives. 'Hopefully, they remember that this is something that can actually happen to them and it's not something that happens to other people,' president of MADD Edmonton Allison Tatham said at the campaign launch. 'It can happen. It happens right here in our own community.' Tatham has been a paramedic for the past 19 years. She said working in emergency services did not prepare her and her family for being a victim of impaired driving. 'Eleven years ago, my dad was killed by an impaired driver, and it was something that was completely foreign to me as somebody who helps other people with their own emergency,' she said. 'Now it's something that happened in my own life.' Tatham added that she wishes the message was getting through to more people but said the legalization of marijuana has presented new challenges. 'Impaired driving also includes drugs, and marijuana (is) probably one of the bigger ones that we see because it doesn't affect you right now. It affects you later,' she said, adding that people can feel high in the middle of driving to their destination. MADD Edmonton crashed car campaign (Cam Wiebe/CTV News Edmonton) MADD Edmonton launches their "Crashed Car" campaign. A flipped over car on the side of the road sits under a billboard in Nisku on June 25, 2025. (Cam Wiebe/CTV News Edmonton) According to MADD Edmonton, four people are killed and 190 people are injured every day from impaired driving incidents. The car will sit at the Nisku location for six weeks before moving to its next location by Dignity Memorial on St. Albert Trail. The campaign runs until the end of the summer. Tatham hopes it will be the 'face of the community every day,' and that the crashed car will remind people not to drive impaired and to report an impaired driver if they see one. 'If we can call 911 every day to report an impaired driver, we're going to be so much better off in the long run,' she added. 'We just want people to understand that this is happening.' With files from CTV News Edmonton's Cam Wiebe
CTV News
21-06-2025
- CTV News
Police say alcohol and water don't mix
As boating season kicks off, police and Mothers Against Drunk Driving are urging the public to avoid operating boats under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Campaign signs on bridges remind boaters to stay sober and report suspected impaired operators by calling 911. Luke Simard has all the details.
CTV News
20-06-2025
- CTV News
First day of summer brings sobering reminder for boaters
Boats docked on the water in Georgina, Ont., on Fri., June 20, 2025. The first official day of summer means boating season is well underway and York Regional Police (YRP) and Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) are doing their part in reminding the public to not drink and drive, including on the water. 'It's important to raise awareness about being impaired by drugs or alcohol and operating a vehicle, whether it's a boat or a car, is still catastrophic when there are crashes,' said Rebecca Blight, president MADD York Region. YRP and MADD have once again partnered up and put signs under bridges on waterways to remind boaters to not drive impaired. YRP Impaired Boating Campaign A MADD Ontario 'report impaired boating' sign is pictured. (CTV News/Luke Simard) 'The sign that's under the bridge reminds boaters to do two things, one call 911 if they suspect that there's an impaired boater, and to remind boaters not to consume alcohol or drugs prior to getting into a boat or while they're operating a boat,' said Russ Bellman, superintendent of support services for YRP. Blight added rules are the same for drivers and boaters. 'People think that when they're on a boat the laws really don't apply to them - it's still the same, you still are impaired, whether it's drugs or alcohol,' said Blight. 'It can be more dangerous to do that because you're on a body of water.' Blight added that impaired driving creates a ripple effect that touches entire families and communities. 'It's not just that person that's involved, it's their mother, their sister, their sister's friend, their best friend, their dad, their dad's friend,' said Blight. YRP Impaired Boating Campaign Members of York Regional Police and M.A.D.D. stand in front of the R.I.D.E. YRP vehicle on Fri., June 20, 2025. (CTV News/Luke Simard) YRP is reminding all boaters be proactive when it comes to safety on the water. 'Wear an approved life-jacket, have the right safety equipment on, tell people when you're out on the water, tell somebody where you're going, and when you're going to be back,' said Bellman. Officers will be patrolling Lake Simcoe, cracking down on boaters under the influence this summer. Police remind the public that on the water, the rules are the same as on the road — if you boat impaired, you'll face the same serious charges as impaired driving.
