The La Porte Police Department announced today the completion of the March 2016 dangerous and impaired driving enforcement campaign. During the 24-day enforcement period, 172 tickets and 86 warnings were written. Officers worked 90 hours of extra patrols during the blitz including 46.5 hours at night.
“Dangerous and impaired driving kills,” said Captain Tom Heath. “It’s a fact we know all too well and it’s why campaigns like this are so important. Putting our officers out in full patrol is a key component in ridding our roads of unsafe drivers, and even one less dangerous and impaired driver behind the wheel is a success for our state.”
One Hundred and nine of the citations written were for speeding; 27 were for sign and signal violations and failure to yield; 18 were for seat belt violations; four were for driving while suspended; three were for child restraint violations and the rest were for other offenses. The majority of the warnings were for equipment issues and other minor violations.
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), in 2014, an average of one alcohol related driving fatality occurred every 53 minutes. Further, NHTSA statistics show each year on average, more than 10,000 people die on U.S. roadways, due to intoxicated driving.
“The message of safe and responsible celebration is one we should all share,” said Indiana Criminal Justice Institute Executive Director Dave Murtaugh. “A good mix of education and enforcement is what makes our efforts successful – efforts we will continue as we work together toward zero distracted and impaired drivers on our roadways.”
Increased enforcement during March is a statewide effort supported by federal highway safety funding. The Indiana Criminal Justice Institute distributes funding to more than 250 participating Indiana law enforcement agencies.
For more information on Indiana’s efforts on impaired driving prevention and enforcement, please visit: http://www.in.gov/cji/2354.htm. To learn more about the La Porte Police Department, please visit: http://www.lpcitypd.com/.