While many do not want to consider it, the reality is that individuals routinely get behind the wheel of their vehicle after consuming too much alcohol. This activity of drunk driving is not limited to any specific age, race or gender. As criminal charges recently filed against an off-duty Pennsylvania State trooper illustrate, it is not limited by one's profession either.

The charges are the result of the role the man allegedly played in the death of a 21-year-old woman this past May. The 40-year-old trooper reportedly rear-ended a car driving on a portion of the Pennsylvania Turnpike near Upper Dublin. At the time of the collision, the young woman was in the process of pulling over to the side of the road as she was experiencing car trouble. An affidavit of probable cause indicated that she was travelling between 11 and 16 m.p.h. when she was struck. In contrast, the affidavit indicated the trooper's vehicle was travelling at a speed between 71 and 76 m.p.h.

The impact of the collision caused the young woman's car to burst into flames. Sadly, she died as a result of the incident.

At the time of the accident, the trooper's blood alcohol level was reportedly 0.188. As a result, late last month he was charged with a variety of crimes including homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence and careless driving.

In a strange twist of fate, at the time of the crash the man was on his way home from a memorial for a singer who was killed over a decade ago when she was struck on the way to a concert by a drunk driver.

Source: Philadelphia Inquirer, "Trooper charged in fatal DUI had just left memorial to a victim," Bonnie L. Cook, June 26, 2012