Law enforcement to watch for drunk or impaired drivers, motorcyclists

Driving on four wheels or on two, law enforcement officials are warning motorists that more than 500 law enforcement agencies are taking part in a statewide drunk driving crackdown starting tomorrow. Special efforts have been made to remind law enforcement officers to watch for not only drunk drivers, but drunk motorcyclists as well.

To combat drunk driving and prevent holiday traffic deaths over the July 4^th weekend, the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning (OHSP) is coordinating the You Drink & Drive. You Lose. mobilization, June 25-July 11. Twenty counties across the state are receiving federal traffic safety funding for overtime patrols and hundreds of other agencies are stepping up enforcement efforts to keep Michigan roadways safe.

In 2003, Michigan recorded the fewest alcohol and/or drug-related fatalities in recent history – 442. This represents a 4 percent decrease from 2002. During the 2003 Independence Day holiday period, there were 17 fatalities on Michigan roadways, two of which were alcohol-related.

"Stronger laws, strict enforcement and intense publicity of the dangers of drinking and driving have contributed to the state’s decline in traffic deaths," said Colonel Tadarial J. Sturdivant, director of the Michigan State Police. "Utilizing these successful elements, we will do our best to make this another safe holiday on Michigan’s roadways."

Contributing to the positive trend in the state’s alcohol-related fatalities is a segment of the motoring public out in full force these summer months – motorcycles. Despite the fact there has been a 28 percent increase in the number fatalities involving motorcycles in Michigan, according to a study by the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, the number of alcohol-related fatalities has decreased by 20 percent.

Nonetheless, alcohol continues to play a significant role in motorcycle crashes. In 2002, of the 82 motorcyclists killed on Michigan roadways, 24 deaths were the result of a had-been-drinking crash and in 22 of those cases, it was the motorcyclist who had been drinking.

"Motorcycles are growing in popularity," Sturdivant said. "We, as law enforcement, need to be conscious of this in our day-to-day traffic duties."

This year’s enforcement mobilization comes under the state’s tougher drunk driving law that took effect Sept. 30, 2003.  The new law lowered the limit at which a motorist is considered a drunk driver to .08 blood alcohol content (BAC). 

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, laboratory and on-road research shows that the vast majority of drivers are significantly impaired at .08 with regard to critical driving tasks such as braking, steering, lane changing, judgment and divided attention.

Those convicted for a first drunk driving offense face:

• Up to 93 days in jail
• Up to a $500 fine
• Up to 360 hours of community service
• Up to 6 points on a driver’s license
• Up to 180 days’ license suspension.

In addition, convicted drunk drivers will be subject to a new $1,000 fee for two consecutive years, for a total of $2,000 in additional costs. Anyone who refuses a breath test the first time is given an automatic one-year driver’s license suspension.

Counties receiving federal traffic safety funding for overtime patrols for this mobilization include: Bay, Berrien, Calhoun, Delta, Ingham, Genesee, Grand Traverse, Jackson, Kalamazoo, Kent, Livingston, Macomb, Monroe, Muskegon, Oakland, Ottawa, Saginaw, St. Clair, Washtenaw and Wayne counties.

For a complete listing of departments participating in the mobilization, visit OHSP’s website at www.michigan.gov/ohsp.

Read more press releases from the Michigan State Police.