Published on Thursday, August 31, 2006
in the Tampa Bay News

Patrols crack down on drunk driving

PINELLAS COUNTY – Drunk drivers and boaters beware, law enforcement officers will be out in force this holiday weekend.

Pinellas County deputies and officers from the St. Pete Beach Police Department will join together to conduct sobriety checkpoints during the Labor Day weekend in conjunction with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration High Visibility Enforcement Program known as "Drunk Driving, Over the Limit, Under Arrest."

The goal of this national crackdown is to reduce injuries and fatalities associated with the serious crime of impaired driving.

The Florida Highway Patrol stepped up its efforts to crack down on drunk driving with an enforcement campaign that began Aug. 18 and continues through Sept. 4.

The campaign, Drunk Driving: Over the Limit, Under Arrest is in response to what Col. Chris Knight, director of the FHP, calls an alarming trend in alcohol-related fatality accidents.

According to the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles, 1,239 people were killed in alcohol-related crashes during 2005. This was a 13.4 percent increase over 2004. It was the most people killed in alcohol-related crashes since 1990 when 1,365 alcohol-related fatalities were recorded in Florida.

DHSMV statistics also show that in 2005 there were 1,631 alcohol related crashes in Pinellas County. Those crashes resulted in 1,162 injuries and 39 fatalities.

Florida troopers are intensifying their efforts to apprehend impaired drivers by conducting DUI checkpoints and saturation patrols throughout the state. Pinellas County law enforcement also is participating in this national crackdown is to reduce injuries and fatalities associated with the serious crime of impaired driving..

Among the activities planned by the county this weekend is sobriety checkpoints. Law enforcement officers also will be working the roadways and waterways looking for drunk and unsafe motorists and boaters.

Drunk driving is one of America’s deadliest crimes, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

In 2005, more than 14,000 people were killed in highway crashes nationwide involving an impaired driver or motorcycle operator with an illegal blood alcohol concentration of .08 or higher. That’s more than 1,000 more than the number reported in 2004.

Driving with a BAC of .08 or higher is illegal in every state. Although drunk-driving fatalities across the nation slightly declined in 2003 and 2004, alcohol-related fatalities increased in 2005.

The NHTSA offers some tips for a safe Labor Day weekend, including the following:

• Designate a sober driver before going out.
• Do not drive under the influence – call a taxi, use mass transit or call a sober friend or family member.
• Report drunk drivers to law enforcement.
• Motorists should wear their safety belts at all times. Motorcyclist should wear a helmet and protective gear.
• Remember that friends don’t let friends drive drunk. Take their keys and arrange to get them home safely.

Tow to Go

Tow to Go is a partnership between AAA Auto Club South and Anheuser Busch that offers members and nonmembers a confidential free-ride home and tow of their vehicle in order to avoid a potential drunk-driving situation.

Drivers can call 1-800-AAA-HELP and the call will be directed to an emergency road service call center. A contractor who has agreed to participate in the program will be sent to take the driver home and tow the vehicle free of charge.

The service will be available from Friday, Sept. 1, through Monday, Sept. 4.

Residents and visitors are advised to heed the national campaign warning and not drink and drive motorized vehicles or watercraft.

“Drunk driving is simply not worth the risk,” the NHTSA said. “Not only do you risk killing yourself or someone else, but the trauma and financial costs of a crash or an arrest for impaired driving can be significant. Violators often face jail time, the loss of their driver’s license, higher insurance rates, attorney fees, time away from work and dozens of other expenses.

“So don’t take the chance. Remember, if you are over the limit, you are under arrest.”

Crosswalk violations could get costly

Drivers who violate the safe crosswalk laws could be fined up to $117.50 when officers from the Treasure Island Police Department and the St. Pete Beach Police Department team up in an “undercover crosswalk sting.”

Plainclothes officers will pose as pedestrian decoys at crosswalks on Aug. 30 and 31 in Treasure Island and St. Pete Beach.

The detail will begin at the 8500 block of Blind Pass Road in St. Pete Beach and move to various uncontrolled intersections along St. Pete Beach and Treasure Island. TIPD officers, while in St. Pete Beach, will use both marked and unmarked cars and assist the St. Pete Beach Police Department.

Drivers need to remember they are required to yield, slow down or stop to a pedestrian in the crosswalk. Pedestrians also have the responsibility to use designated crosswalks and should only cross when the crosswalk sign is lit for safe crossing. The fine for jaywalking is $43.50. Pedestrians crossing a road outside of a designated crosswalk must yield to traffic.