States across the country have increased police patrols and set up new sobriety checkpoints as part of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA)’s “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” program, and Indiana is no exception. The purpose of the program is to reduce the number of drunk or impaired drivers on the roads during the Labor Day weekend, in order to decrease the number of accidents.
Each day, according to NHTSA, approximately 29 U.S. residents die and approximately 1440 more are injured in a crash involving a drunk driver. To put this in perspective, think of how many people would lose their lives if 21 jumbo jets crashed each year, and everyone on board were killed. According to NHTSA, this number is about 11,000 – and it’s the same number of people who lose their lives to drunk driving-related crashes in the U.S. each year.
The number of injury-causing car accident increases over holiday weekends, as people travel to see family or to party. Indiana’s law enforcement officers are increasing their patrols over this Labor Day weekend, as well as creating sobriety checkpoints. The “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign kicks off this weekend with events in Indianapolis and Elkhart County. These include ceremonies at Victory Field in Indianapolis and a discussion panel in Elkhart, both featuring law enforcement personnel who have dedicated significant time and energy toward protecting motorists and their passengers by fighting drunk driving.
As a former police officer and a dedicated Indiana dram shop lawyer, I have seen firsthand how lives can change in an instant, merely because one driver chose to get behind the wheel after too many drinks. Help ensure that you and your fellow Indianans will live to celebrate many happy Labor Days to come by planning ahead so that you aren’t tempted to drive while under the influence of alcohol.
