Several Blake students, some of whom wept openly during the media event, said Alicia's death had changed their perspective.
"It's a positive thing, though not the most popular," said Blake sophomore Alan Brylawski, 15. "But peer pressure doesn't come close to what the loss of a classmate feels like."
Del. Ruth M. Kirk (D-Baltimore) tells the story of the 1968 death of her 17-year-old son in an automobile accident.
(James A. Parcell -- The Washington Post)
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Accident Victims: The number of young people killed in traffic accidents has surged in the Washington region.
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Some parents said the measures don't go far enough.
"I think a driver's license should be something kids earn after they graduate from high school," said Patricia Sullivan, a mother of two teenagers from Mount Rainier. "I'd rather they get through high school and then concentrate on driving."
Highway safety experts say that distraction is a leading cause of teenage traffic accidents and that passenger restrictions are the most effective legislative tool to reduce teenage road fatalities.
According to the Arlington-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the risk of a crash by a 16- or 17-year-old driver doubles with two peers in the vehicle and quadruples with three or more.
Of 16 teenagers killed in auto crashes in Montgomery County since the beginning of 2004, seven were traveling with other teenagers, according to county police statistics.
In Virginia, the youngest drivers are not allowed to have more than one passenger younger than 18 for the first year after receiving a license. After a year, the limit rises to three passengers younger than 18 until the drivers themselves are 18. The passenger restrictions do not apply to family members.
In the District, novice drivers are prohibited from carrying any passengers during the first six months of a provisional license, unless supervised by a driver who is at least 21. After six months, teen drivers may carry two passengers, with the restriction lifted when they turn 18. Family members are exempt.
The passenger restriction bill has been controversial in the Maryland General Assembly, particularly the House, because opponents see it as unfairly affecting rural and poor students who depend on friends for transportation. The Senate has been less resistant.
House members yesterday approved the passenger-restriction bill after a lively debate.
"As well intentioned as the bill is, it will prohibit kids from carpooling," said Del. Robert A. Zirkin (D-Baltimore County). "What this does is legislate good parenting, and I don't think we should do that."
The bill survived an attempt by Zirkin to add a long list of exemptions, an amendment that supporters called "a poison pill." The House voted down the amendment Tuesday by a substantial margin.
The margin in yesterday's final vote was even wider, enlarged perhaps by emotional testimony from several legislators who urged colleagues to save teen lives by voting for the bill.
Del. Ruth M. Kirk (D-Baltimore) stood during floor debate to tell the story of the 1968 death of her 17-year-old son.
"I'm the only one in this House of Delegates that lost a son in an automobile accident," said Kirk, her eyes welling. "Even though we tell our children that we don't want them to do something, they'll still do it. . . . I'm saying to you to support this bill."
Staff writer Chris L. Jenkins contributed to this report.
