Perhaps the celebrity status of a recent drunken driving victim will help produce the kind of follow-through that will force the perpetrator to live up to her obligations. The high profile of the case could cause authorities to be stricter than is the case in too many vehicular assaults.

A woman whose car struck actress Sandra Bullock’s SUV last month has been placed on probation for a year. The 64-year-old driver, who pleaded guilty to operating a vehicle under the influence, will lose her driver’s license for 60 days and be required to complete an alcohol safety program. Fortunately, neither Bullock nor her husband were hurt in the April 18 wreck that occurred in Gloucester, Mass., where Bullock is filming a movie. The other woman’s car crossed the center line on a main street and struck the vehicle carrying Bullock and her husband, Jesse James.

It is hoped the monitoring of this case will prevent the kind of tragedy that occurred recently in the Kansas City area. A man who had killed as a drunken driver and spent time in prison was back on the streets, drunk again, and was involved in a wreck that killed a mother and her daughter. Where was the oversight of his status and why was he ever allowed to get back behind the wheel?

Almost weekly we read about instances where people with criminal records for substance abuse while driving are driving again, often with tragic results. Perhaps the fact that Sandra Bullock is so well-known will force Massachusetts officials to keep track of the drunken driver who hit the actress and make sure she complies with the driving restrictions and alcohol safety program that were prescribed in her sentence.

Drunken drivers who kill, sometimes more than once, are no better than malcontents who take a gun and randomly shoot people. Both are criminals and should be dealt with as criminals, with no tolerance for their irresponsible behavior.