DALLAS -- The North Texas chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving has received many calls from concerned citizens today since word has spread about Monday’s fiery crash involving a suspected drunk driver that killed a young couple and seriously injured four others.

“It’s maddening! People are mad,” said Mary Kardell, the group’s executive director.

Uriel Perez Palacios, 22, of Dallas already had two police chases and four outstanding drug and DWI warrants under his belt prior to Monday’s crash.

Ms. Kardell said callers want to know why a judge hadn’t taken Mr. Palacios off the road or why he wasn’t locked up in a jail cell.

A sheriff’s department official said Mr. Palacios may have been driving on a suspended license when he was pulled over about 2 a.m. Monday by a Dallas County sheriff's deputy for allegedly weaving through traffic on North Central Expressway.

As the deputy approached his vehicle, Mr. Palacios drove away with his lights off. He exited at Mockingbird Lane and sped through a red light in his Chevy Tahoe, striking another vehicle with five Southern Methodist University students inside.

That collision sent Mr. Palacios’ car into the air and into the vehicle of Erika and German Clouet, crushing the car and killing the young couple.

Mr. Palacios was ejected from his vehicle, and his passenger, Bibiana Espinoza, 23, had to be cut out. Both were taken to Baylor University Medical Center in Dallas, where Ms. Espinoza remained in critical condition Tuesday afternoon. Mr. Palacios' condition was upgraded to fair.

At least three others, including two Southern Methodist University students, were injured in the wreck. Two of the SMU students were treated for injuries that weren't life-threatening.

Late Monday, officials charged Mr. Palacios with two counts of intoxication manslaughter and three counts of intoxication assault.

This fatal crash comes as MADD opens its annual national conference beginning Thursday in Dallas.

Ms. Kardell said today the deadly wreck “absolutely” could have been prevented.

“Obviously if someone gets caught three or four times, there’s a problem,” she said. “The public should be outraged enough to support their local law enforcement. The sheriff’s department did their duty.”

MADD will be supporting mandatory ignition interlock devices for drunk drivers and sobriety check points in the coming legislative session, she said.

Sobriety check points, set up by law enforcement officials and announced to the public, usualy involve stopping every vehicle or a specific sequence of vehicles to detect impaired drivers. Drivers who have ignition interlock devices installed in their vehicles must blow into them before the ignition will start.

According to statistics compiled by MADD, about one-third of all drivers arrested or convicted of driving under the influence are repeat offenders. These drivers are 40 percent more likely to be involved in a fatal crash than those without prior DWIs, MADD statistics show.

Ms. Kardell pointed to the neighboring states of New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana. Each state has sobriety check points put in place that help curb alcohol-related fatalities. Texas is one of the few states that doesn’t use such check points, she said.

Ms. Kardell said law enforcement officials in Texas can only do so much. “We need to give them the tools they need to make our roadways safe. We’re a huge state with a lot of folks driving and we need to save lives.”

In the meantime, MADD will continue to reach out to students at SMU and Paul Keyes Elementary School, where Ms. Clouet taught second grade.

“I just can’t imagine coming back from a holiday weekend and finding out your teacher’s been killed,” Ms. Kardell said.