LANGLEY AFB, VA. –
A stripe, $1,500 in fines and lawyer fees, an unfavorable information file, a letter of reprimand, a suspended driver's license, a night in jail, 30 days at a military rehabilitation center, placement on a control roster, embarrassment and shame-these are just some of the costs associated with drinking and driving. And yet, despite all he lost, one Langley Airman says he's quite lucky.
It was a Wednesday night after swing shift when Staff Sgt. David Matthews decided to go to the bar for a few drinks - two beers and two shots, to be exact. He was by himself and felt fine to drive back to his friend's house where he was staying. He parked his car, turned up his music and decided to smoke a cigarette before going inside to sleep. Unaware that he had fallen asleep in his vehicle, Sergeant Matthews woke up to a tap on his window from a police officer. A neighbor had called to complain about the music coming from his parked car, and even though he wasn't driving at that moment, he was behind the wheel, and he had been drinking.
He failed the breathalyzer and sobriety test with a blood alcohol content of .12, well above the .08 limit, even though it had been several hours since his last drink.
Some might think the worst part would be getting arrested or spending the night in jail, but for Sergeant Matthews, it was reporting to his commander, first shirt and chief the next morning.
"I was nervous, scared and embarrassed," he admitted. "I had that sick feeling, and I knew I had let them down."
Imagine his commander's surprise when Sergeant Matthews showed up for work that day - after all, he was supposed to be on leave to go to home for his cousin's funeral.
Instead of going home, Sergeant Matthews went to court, where his drinking under the influence charge was reduced to reckless driving, which still means a six-month driving suspension which only allows him to drive to work, home and to pick up his daughter.
Sergeant Matthews also spent 30 days at the Substance Abuse Rehabilitation Program at Norfolk Naval Base where he went through rehabilitation, counseling and nightly Alcoholic Anonymous meetings, which he described as "a real learning experience."
Sergeant Matthews said from this experience, he learned that he didn't ever want to go through this again, and that he didn't want anything to do with alcohol. Since the day he left the SARP, now-Senior Airman Matthews hasn't had a drop.
"I know now that I had a problem then, and my life is a lot better now that I've quit drinking," he said.
Life may be better, but it's not easy. In addition to the laundry list of costs at the beginning of this article - fines, the loss of rank and disciplinary action - Airman Matthews is still required to go to counseling with the Alcohol, Drug Abuse Prevention Treatment program at Langley. He's still trying to earn and regain the trust and respect from his peers and leadership, and there is no guarantee that his career will ever fully recover from this incident.
He made a mistake. He learned his lesson and he wants others to hear his story and learn from it.
"I've read the articles, I've sat through the briefings, and I didn't think it would ever happen to me - and then it did," he said.
He admits that going out to the bar alone was a mistake from the start.
"You should always have a wingman, and you should always have a plan," said Airman Matthews, who now volunteers with Langley Airmen Against Drunk Driving.
Airman Matthews is one of the few lucky ones that was able to learn from his mistake and was given a second chance to get his life back on track. Others are not so fortunate.
Imagine what would have happened if he had wrecked his car that night. Would he be paralyzed? Dead? Worse, what if he had killed someone else?
"Everything happens for a reason," said Airman Matthews, who hopes that his story will prevent others from having to go through what he went through.
"Learn from my mistake, and don't drink and drive," he said.