file photo by Boyd Loving
N.J. police stepping up patrols to crack down on drunken driving
SUNDAY DECEMBER 29, 2013, 7:09 PM
BY STEFANIE DAZIO
STAFF WRITER
THE RECORD
If you’ve had a drink this holiday season, think twice before you drive: Police departments across the state are ramping up their DWI patrols through Jan. 2 as part of a nationwide crackdown on drunken driving.
The state’s Division of Highway Traffic Safety is spearheading New Jersey’s campaign, and awarded 13 Bergen County and six Passaic County police departments $4,400 grants to defray overtime costs from Dec. 6 to Jan. 2 through the “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” initiative.
The holiday season often brings increased alcohol consumption with it, and police officers work to get drunk drivers off the roads through roving patrols and checkpoints. Officers also check for other motor vehicle violations.
“It’s more of a celebration time of year and people go out and want to have a good time,” Glen Rock Police Det. Sgt. Eric Reamy said. “That’s when drinking and driving increases, and unfortunately, that’s when fatalities increase.”
During last year’s effort, police made 170 DWI arrests in Bergen County and 100 in Passaic County from Dec. 7, 2012 to Jan. 2, 2013. In 2011, there were 152 alcohol-impaired fatalities in the state, according to the Division of Highway Traffic Safety, which accounted for 24 percent of New Jersey’s motor vehicle-related deaths.
– See more at: https://www.northjersey.com/news/bergen/NJ_police_stepping_up_patrols_to_crack_down_on_drunken_driving.html#sthash.fpXJhf5G.dpuf
$aftey fir$t!
The problem drunks never seem to get caught.
This will snare a few social drinkers.
The ‘deterrent’ effect does work by publicizing this.