Richard had an exceedingly hard time keeping a job. In truth, because of his indolence and lack of motivation, he was unemployed far more regularly than he was employed. And when he did get a job, he had an awfully difficult time getting to work in a timely manner, he usually received less than passing performance assessments, and he called off sick so frequently that he typically got fired just a few weeks after he started working.

To no one's amazement, one of the outcomes of Richard's less than acceptable employment history was the fact that he was virtually broke on a day-to-day basis. Despite Richard's less than passing work record and financial misbehavior, however, one way or another he made it a point to drink a great deal on a daily basis.

So it came as no big shock when Richard received a third DUI. When he went before the court, the magistrate clearly stated to Richard that his alcohol-related actions was irresponsible and, as a result, he was going to sentence Richard to serve twelve months locked up in jail.

During his time in the county jail, Richard was required to learn more about alcohol abuse facts such as alcohol related effects and alcohol deaths, about the adverse outcomes of irresponsible drinking, and he was required to get alcohol rehab. The judge underscored the fact that unless Richard gets professional alcohol therapy and discovers how to live an alcohol-free life, he will more likely than not be spending quite a bit of his time in the county jail.

Richard said that he grasped what the magistrate was proclaiming but he still asserted that incarceration was not the most productive ruling. The magistrate saw things differently and proclaimed that it was his job to keep alcohol dependent people off the streets who drive and drink and who get arrested for a DUI. To validate this view, the judge articulated some venerable, comprehensively researched alcohol dependency and alcohol abuse statistics and facts that underscored some of the hurtful consequences that are correlated with excessive drinking such as alcohol related deaths.

Although Richard understood that he drank in an excessive and irresponsible manner, he never thought that he was a person who was addicted to alcohol. So it was a big surprise when Richard began experiencing chronic alcoholism symptoms and signs and alcohol withdrawal symptoms around five hours after getting locked up in the local jail.

To manage his symptoms of alcohol withdrawal in a harm free manner, Richard was transferred to an alcohol rehabilitation hospital for alcohol detox and then returned to the municipal jail. While behind bars Richard received alcohol counseling but because he received this treatment as something that was forced upon him, he neglected to take ownership of his abusive drinking.

When his time in the city jail was finished, the magistrate without faltering announced to Richard that he would be under strict observation and would be required to take periodic urine alcohol tests. After hearing how Richard neglected to take ownership of his drinking problem and how he reluctantly followed the treatment policy and procedures while behind bars, the judge knew that it was only a matter of time before he would be seeing Richard once again in court about his excessive and irresponsible drinking behavior.

As the magistrate reflected on Richard's situation, he couldn't help but think about how some individuals never "connect the dots" and discover how to live in a mature and adult manner.