Councilor proposes law to prevent drunk driving

BOSTON -- There's a new push to give parking valets the power to keep your keys if you're too drunk to drive. A city councilor wants to make it a law in Massachusetts.

Could valets be a key defense against drunk driving? When convicted hit and run driver Colin Ratiu was sentenced in December for the 2010 accident that killed a Northeastern student, he said something that got the attention of this Boston city councilor:

“He said that he was so drunk at the concert, he said he couldn't believe that the valet there gave him keys,” said Rob Consalvo, Boston city councilor.

Councilor Rob Consalvo has proposed creating a new law that would authorize valets to stop intoxicated drivers from getting behind the wheel.

Most valet companies 7News spoke with said they already keep the keys if someone is too drunk to drive. It’s common sense and common practice, but the question is whether it should be required.

“It’s kind of a sticky issue. Our valets obviously -- if somebody’s obviously drunk, they won’t give them the keys, and it’s common sense to put them in a cab. We pay for the cab. But if they’re going to make it a law, there has to be some training behind it,” said Dan Donahue, VP Managing Director of Lenox Hotel.

The councilor says valets would have to be trained like bartenders and restaurant managers to spot the signs of an intoxicated person.

Bostonians 7News spoke to support the idea.

"The responsibility should still stay with the establishment, the valet parker. Just like the bartender,” said Michael Morrison.

“It’s a good idea because someone's looking out for you to prevent more accidents,” said Jill Shapliegh.

But, there are still concerns about liability.

“If they are giving keys away to drunk drivers and those drunk drivers are killing people, I would argue that they are liable anyway. So, we're not looking at the valet companies as the criminals here or the ones we're targeting, we're doing opposite. We're saying, ‘Let’s get creative, you partner with us as a city, work with us to be our last line of defense to keep these cars off the road,” said Consalvo.

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