Editorial: At what point is the pain too much to bear?

Dickensian scenes play out daily in a Hubbard County courtroom, full of human frailty, loss, heartbreak and redemption.

One recent scene bears mention. A sobbing middle-aged man, dressed in orange jail scrubs, was being sentenced for repeat drunken driving offenses. He could barely compose himself as he relayed a tale of utter failure, for which he was obviously remorseful.

Judge Robert Tiffany kindly allowed the man a few minutes to regain his composure so he could continue. The man was hell-bent on apologizing for his behavior.

He told the story of having a good job, a regular income that supported his family and then skipped to the part where it all went amiss. He fell off the wagon, incurring arrests and probation violations to the point where he will be imprisoned.

Bailiffs allowed the man a last moment of compassion before he was led away. His wife and son approached the defendant's table to say goodbye, the boy trying to be stalwart in the face of his father's breakdown, the wife looking drained and haggard.

The boy will be grown by the time his father comes home.

Sheriff Cory Aukes and his staff are to be commended for increasing their DWI enforcement efforts.

But what people don't realize is the human toll that enforcement takes.

At some point especially as we head into a deadly holiday weekend, we need to get a clue.

Drunken driving is against the law, even the first time.

Too many young people are breezing through the judicial process after that first DWI. Do we need to increase the initial penalties more so offenders get the message?

Isn't the loss of a driver's license, possibly your insurance coverage and diminished job prospects sufficient?

Obviously not.

So maybe we should all think of a devastated boy who will lose his dad during his formative years, who turned away so his weeping father wouldn't see him cry, too.

That's a sobering thought.