The MC asked people to remove their hats and hoods, and to turn off their electronic devices (actually, she kept saying “electronical” devices). The panel started a little early at 6:45pm. The slideshow was switched to a 30-minute video of interviews with victims’ families.
She also said, “When we leave here, we exit by row, starting from the front.” That caused some people to rush closer, but I was fine where I was in the sixth row. There was a video projection running with a slideshow of DUI crash victims and information cards with facts related to DUI.Ībout 30 minutes later, the woman who was serving as the MC made an announcement that anyone sitting in the back rows needed to move forward because they were expecting a full house. It was a little after 5:30pm when I grabbed a seat in the sixth row from the stage. The panel was being held in an auditorium that had about 300 seats, so there was plenty of room. They were also accepting cash despite the registration information that warned that they would not. For check-in, a photo ID and $35 money order or cashier’s check were required. I replied, also laughing, “Well, anything in LA that has to do with DUI is going to have a line.”Īs I said the word “DUI,” a few other people turned and looked right at me, almost to say, Shh, don’t say that word aloud.Ĭheck-in started early and went relatively quickly. She said, laughing, “I just didn’t want to get in line and have it be something else.” Check-in for the panel was starting at 5:30pm and the panel itself was starting at 7pm.Īs I got in line, the woman in front of me turned around and asked, “This is for MADD, right?” (The wording seems to be pretty clear that driving to other programs like MADD VIP and AA meetings aren’t allowed with a restricted license, but I did a lot of asking around first.) I arrived at the Department of Health building at 5pm and there was already a line wrapped around the building of about 50 people. I still had just a restricted license that only allowed driving to/from work and an alcohol education program. There is a “Continue” button at the bottom that leads to the registration.I left work early so that I could take public transportation to the panel. It took me awhile to figure out how to use this page. I wasn’t sure what to expect, and judging from their registration page that has a circa 1992 feel to it, I was worried that it would feel like a disorganized, bureaucratic waste of time.
As part of my sentence, I had to attend a MADD Victim Impact Panel (VIP).
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