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From mid-August through Labor Day, the Hazelwood Police Department (HPD) will be out in force conducting saturation patrols and a DWI sobriety checkpoint as part of the annual nationwide “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” crackdown on drunk driving. The HPD will be conducting a DWI sobriety checkpoint during the weekend of Aug. 29-31 at an undisclosed location within the city.

Although it is illegal in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico to drive drunk, (which means having a blood alcohol concentration of .08 or higher), many people get behind the wheel after consuming too much alcohol. The latest statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration underscore the serious nature of drunk driving.

“Every year, about one-third of all motor vehicle traffic deaths involve one or more impaired drivers or motorcycle operators,” Hazelwood Police Chief Gregg Hall said. “In 2013, 223 people died in Missouri vehicle accidents involving impaired drivers. That works out to approximately one impaired driving fatality every 1-1/2 days.”

“Research has shown that high-visibility enforcement like the ‘Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over’ campaign reduces drunk driving fatalities by as much as 20 percent.”

Not only does drinking alcohol impair a person’s ability to operate a vehicle safely, but also it impairs a person’s reaction time and good decision-making skills.

Hall noted that being arrested for drunk driving brings a wide range of negative consequences into one’s life. Intoxicated drivers face jail time, loss of their driver’s licenses, and steep financial repercussions such as higher insurance rates, attorney fees, court costs, lost time at work, and the potential loss of employment. When family, friends and co-workers find out, violators also face personal embarrassment as well.

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