Mississippi Department of Public Safety Joins National Crackdown on Impaired Drivers August 15 – September 1
Contact: Dr. Billy White, Executive Director
Division of Public Safety Planning
Phone: 601-987-4155/Cell: 601-331-2721
bwhite@mdps.state.ms.us
MS Department of Public Safety
Becky Webster, Division Director
Phone: 601-987-1301/Cell: 601-594-5665
bwebster@mdps.state.ms.us
Mississippi Department of Public Safety Joins National Crackdown on Impaired Drivers August 15 – September 1
(Jackson, MS) – Impaired driving is not an accident — it’s an epidemic of careless disregard for human life.
That’s why the Mississippi Department of Public Safety’s Highway Patrol will join thousands of county and local law enforcement agencies throughout the state and nation in the upcoming Impaired Driving Enforcement Campaign August 15 through Labor Day. Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest. is a national effort to prevent tragedies in Mississippi and across the United States.
Impaired driving is a deadly crime with serious consequences. Each year, more than 13,500 die on our nation’s roads due to impaired driving. The Mississippi Highway Patrol, in conjunction with Mississippi’s finest police officers, deputy sheriffs and other law enforcement agencies, will be working diligently together to help make the streets and highways safer.
“We will be aggressively looking for all impaired drivers and will arrest anyone we find driving under the influence,” said Stephen B. Simpson, Commissioner of the Department.
Driving with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher is illegal in every state. Yet, in 2006 there were more than 167 DUI arrests per hour in the United States, with nearly 13,500 fatalities from alcohol impaired driving crashes nationwide, of which 375 died on Mississippi roads.
“Impaired drivers are a very large threat to themselves and all those they encounter. Our goal is to get these drivers off the streets,” said Simpson. “Too many people don’t understand the gravity of their actions and the serious consequences of driving while impaired. On top of the possibility of a deadly crash, incarceration, driver’s license suspension, higher insurance rates, and numerous other expenses from attorney fees, fines, and court costs can result from just one instance of drinking and driving.”
Motorcycle riders also have a high rate of alcohol abuse in fatal crashes. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), 27 percent of all fatally injured motorcyclists in 2006 were legally intoxicated, plus 41 percent of those who died in single-vehicle crashes had a BAC above the legal limit.
Underage DUI arrests constitute major traffic safety problems. The Mississippi underage driver accounts for 11.5 percent of all Mississippi drivers arrested for DUI. The most alarming fact is that these young drivers are committing two serious offenses – both drinking alcohol illegally and then driving under the influence.
In Mississippi, traffic safety indicators show a positive change from 2006 to 2007. Last year’s “Over the Limit – Under Arrest” public information and education campaign, paired with the strict traffic enforcement by state and local departments, documented that our state has made significant progress in reducing deaths on our roadways.
Though fatal crashes are down only 1 percent, traffic fatalities are down 3 percent.
Alcohol-related fatalities decreased from 375 in 2006 to 345 in 2007, representing an 8 percent over all improvement; in the same time period, DUI arrests increased from 23,693 in 2006 to 24,851 in 2007.
“In the last 29 months Governor Barbour has put 169 new troopers on the highway. This has undoubtedly contributed to the 8 percent decrease in alcohol-related fatalities,” said Col. Michael Berthay of the Mississippi Highway Patrol.
“Be smart,” said Simpson. “Don’t drink and drive. Refuse to ride with a driver who has had too much to drink. We won’t tolerate it and neither should you.”
For more information on the Impaired Driving Campaign, contact Becky Webster, bwebster@mdps.state.ms.us, or visit the national web site at www.StopImpairedDriving.org.
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