Statement on Vehicular Manslaughter Charges Against Author off Moderation Management Audrey Kishline
By Stacia Murphy, NCADD PresidentIt was with great sadness that the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc. (NCADD) today learned that Audrey Kishline, author of Moderation Management and founder of a movement with the same name, has been charged by the state of Washington with two counts of vehicular manslaughter.
According to the Seattle Times, Ms. Kishline had a blood alcohol content of 0.26 -- more than three times the legal limit -- when the pick up truck she was driving in the wrong direction on an interstate highway crashed into a second vehicle, killing a man and his daughter on March 25. NCADD offers its belated condolences to the family of Richard and LaSchell Davis.
The Seattle Times also has reported that Ms. Kishline's trial, scheduled to have begun today, has been postponed pending completion of intensive treatment for alcoholism. Her lawyer has been quoted as saying that Ms. Kishline realizes that "moderation management is nothing but alcoholics covering up their problem."
This dreadful tragedy might have been avoided if Ms. Kishline had come to this realization earlier. Unfortunately, the disease of alcoholism, which is characterized by denial, prevented this from occurring.
Amplified Denial
While this does not excuse Ms. Kishline's actions, it provides a harsh lesson for all of society, particularly those individuals who collude with the media to continually question abstinence-based treatment for problems related to alcohol and other drugs.What makes Ms. Kishline's present situation even more distressing is the fact that her denial, amplified by the media, undoubtedly contributed to the progression of alcoholism and other alcohol-related problems for thousands more unidentified Americans and their families.
In March 1995, representatives of this organization debated Ms. Kishline several times on national television and in newspapers all over the country. How many of these television programs and newspapers will give as much prominence to the consequences of "moderation management" five years later? As is often repeated in training courses for alcoholism counselors, "if it's a problem in March, it's going to be a disaster by December."
The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence hopes Ms. Kishline will finally achieve sobriety and recognize how high a price denial of her illness has exacted. But more significantly, we should all remember the names of Richard and LaSchell Davis the next time a problem drinker claims to be able to "drink a little" without harm.
As a society we must finally accept that abstinence offers the safest and most predictable course for the treatment of alcohol and other drug-related problems and we must do everything we can to break through the denial of those who are actively addicted.
