Sheriff’s Department Urges Motorists Not To Drink And Drive
Drunk driving is one of America’s deadliest crimes. In 2008, 11,773 people died in highway crashes involving a driver or motorcycle rider with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher.
The Yalobusha County Sheriff’s Department is joining with thousands of other law enforcement and highway safety agencies across the nation from Dec. 16 to Jan. 3, to take part in the Drunk Driving. Over the limit. Under arrest. crackdown on impaired driving.
“We are proud to be a recipient of a $10,000 grant from the Mississippi Public Safety to pay overtime for our deputies to work during specific holiday period,” Sheriff Lance Humphreys reported.
“We will be out in force conducting sobriety checkpoints, our goal is to save lives,” Humphreys added. “Drunk driving is simply not worth the risk. Not only do you risk killing yourself or someone else, but the trauma and financial costs of a crash or an arrest for impaired driving can be significant.”
The national Drunk Driving. Over the limit. Under arrest, impaired driving crackdown is a deterrence program organized by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that focuses on combining high-visibility enforcement with heightened public awareness through advertising and publicity.
This December’s effort is supported by $7.5 million in paid-national advertising to help put everyone on notice that if they are caught driving impaired, they will be arrested.
The campaign urges anyone who plans to drink alcohol to take the following precautions.
• Plan a safe way home before the festivities begin;
• Before drinking, designate a sober driver and leave your car keys at home;
• If you’re impaired, use a taxi, call a sober friend or family member, or use public transportation to get home safely;
• Wear your seat belt while in a car or use a helmet and protective gear when on a motorcycle as those are your best defenses against an impaired driver;
• If you happen to see a drunk driver on the road, don’t hesitate to contact your local law enforcement.
For more information, visit www.StopImpairedDriving.org.
