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Published on Tuesday, December 21, 2004
in the Naples Daily News
We appreciate your thoughts concerning our new enforcement tool, the Mercury Marauder. These new unmarked vehicles, 18 in all, were donated by a corporate benefactor to help the Florida Highway Patrol combat the rising number of aggressive driving violations committed on roadways across the state of Florida.
Aggressive driving has become an issue of national concern. As the fourth-largest state and one that hosts approximately 70 million visitors each year, Florida is seeing an alarming increase in aggressive driving violations, especially on our interstates and highways in our metropolitan areas.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a large percentage of the traffic fatalities that occur in our nation are directly attributed to aggressive driving behaviors. Last year in Florida, 3,179 people were killed in traffic crashes, while 221,639 were injured. Many of these tragedies were attributed to aggressive driving violations. We are sure that you would agree that these numbers are alarming. FHP, along with our law-enforcement partners throughout the state, has an obligation to implement new strategies or refine old ones to curb the carnage on Florida's roadways.
The new fleet of Marauders is used to enhance our agency's ability to deter and apprehend aggressive drivers. These new vehicles will also play a key role in future FHP campaigns designed to keep drivers who endanger themselves and others off our streets and highways. Recently, in a single day, one of our troopers in a new Marauder issued 15 citations to violators on Florida's Turnpike. Of those 15 citations, 10 were issued for speeds in excess of 100 miles per hour.
Surely, we need all the tools at our disposal to keep motorists who violate our state's traffic laws from turning our highways into race tracks.
We understand your concerns about the use of unmarked vehicles, but we respectfully disagree. The Florida Highway Patrol is one of many law-enforcement agencies across the United States that uses unmarked vehicles in traffic enforcement operations. We do understand, however, that these covert vehicles, like any high-powered, specialized tool, must be used with due diligence. As a result, our agency has strict guidelines that regulate the manner and use of our unmarked fleet. In addition, the men and women chosen to be assigned our new Marauders are experienced, self-directed troopers who have demonstrated exemplary dedication and commitment to highway safety.
FHP policy also mandates that any trooper making a traffic stop in any unmarked vehicle must be in uniform. If the person being stopped has concerns about the identity of the person attempting to stop them, we urge the driver to drive to the closest well-lit, populated location available, while obeying all traffic laws and posted speed limits before pulling over. Our troopers are aware that some members of the public may question the legitimacy of an unmarked police vehicle, therefore, if necessary, a marked FHP patrol car will be dispatched to the scene for assistance.
Finally, an important factor to consider is that FHP uses these unmarked Marauders to detect and apprehend the worst traffic offenders in the state, helping to keep dangerous drivers from injuring or killing other motorists on Florida's busiest interstates and highways. It is the Florida Highway Patrol's goal to protect the motoring public and help create the safest possible driving experience for all of our citizens and visitors.
Col. Christopher Knight is director of the Florida Highway Patrol in Tallahassee.