With few class assignments, back-to-school bar specials and the excitement of returning to campus after the holidays, the first week of classes can be a minefield of distraction and drinking for students.
And with more drinking ostensibly comes a greater probability of students driving drunk.
LSUPD dealt with seven driving-while-intoxicated instances during the first week of this semester — more than the department issued throughout all of last semester.
Most of the DWIs between Jan. 13 to Jan. 22 were issued near Nicholson Extension, according to LSUPD crime reports. Other locations included West Lakeshore Drive and Skip Bertman Drive, according to the reports.
LSUPD representative Sgt. Blake Tabor said four of the DWIs were University students, and the other three were people not affiliated with the University.
Cody Juneau, renewable natural resources freshman, said he always made sure to have a driver the three times he went out during the first week of school.
Juneau said he typically goes out once a week.
“Everyone goes out the first week because we don’t have anything to worry about,” Juneau said.
But Tabor said there aren’t necessarily more DWIs recorded during the first week of school than any other week in the year, and it’s hard to compare one week to another.
In the days surrounding the Nov. 6 football game against Alabama — one of the busiest party weekends of the semester — there were no DWIs issued by LSUPD. And out of the five total DWIs last semester, two of them were issued during finals week.
Tabor said students are trying to figure out where they fit in and partying more than they should at the beginning of each semester.
The bars to the north and south of campus bring drunken drivers through campus who are not related to the University, making it even harder to blame the first week of school for increased DWIs, Tabor said.
He said LSUPD doesn’t change tactics or add more patrol officers on occasions when more students may be out drinking.
“We remain consistent with our patrols throughout the year,” Tabor said.
For 2009 — the last year available — the Louisiana State Police recorded 13,966 DWI arrests, according to the agency’s website. That number is a 4,000 increase from two years before.
Any student who receives a DWI is reported to the Dean of Students at the Office of Student Advocacy and Accountability, Tabor said.
The University Code of Student Conduct states that students may receive violations if they are charged with driving under the influence or driving while intoxicated.
Students who receive violations can receive punishments ranging from warning probation, disciplinary probation, prohibition from holding a leadership position on campus, suspension and other forms of punishment, according to the University Code of Student Conduct.
Lauren Hunter, biology freshman, said Tigerland was more packed than usual on the Saturday after the first week.
“There was more energy than usual,” Hunter said.
Patrick Fitz, undeclared freshman, said he was careful not to be noticeable while drinking at Tigerland during the first week of the semester.
The Mothers Against Drunk Driving website reports that 29 percent of people 12 to 20 in Louisiana used alcohol last month. The website also reports 17 percent of people in that age range had five or more drinks in a single occasion.
The legal limit for drivers over 21 is a 0.08 BAC and a 0.02 for drivers under 21.
Drivers charged with a DWI in Louisiana face possible punishments of loss of driver’s license for 90 to 180 days, court-ordered substance-abuse classes, jail time, fines and court fees, and other court-ordered penalties, according to the University Student Handbook.
More than a third of traffic deaths in Louisiana are related to driving under the influence, according to the MADD website.
“More partying leads to more drinking and driving,” said Kayla Reed, English freshman.
Tabor said LSUPD tries educate all students on topics ranging from drinking and driving, using narcotics and leaving belongings unattended, but the department focuses its energies on freshmen.
 
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Contact Celeste Ansley at [email protected]