BATESVILLE – Two local law enforcement agencies are stepping up enforcement efforts through the next month.
The Batesville Police Department told us that they along with the Franklin County Sheriff’s Department will add more patrols in an effort to curb drunk driving between August 1 and September 1.
The crackdown is in conjunction with The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Law enforcement agencies across the nation are participating in the “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign.
In 2012, Labor Day weekend saw 147 drunk-driving fatalities. To put it in perspective, throughout the year someone is killed in an alcohol-impaired-driving crash every 51 minutes, on average. Over the Labor Day weekend, that statistic jumps to one alcohol-impaired-driving fatality every 34 minutes.
Among the people killed in drunk-driving crashes over the 2012 Labor Day holiday weekend, almost half were between the ages of 18 and 34.
“We are determined to help bring these numbers down,” said Batesville Police Lt. Doug Wolfer. “There are too many people dying on the roads, and many of those deaths could have been prevented.”
