South Carolina Department of Public Safety
FOR IMMEDIATE
RELEASE
July 1, 2009
CONTACT:
Your local CRO, 803-896-8144
HIGHWAY PATROL ANNOUNCES 31-MEMBER STATEWIDE DUI TEAM
“Drunk driving has plagued
this state for years,” said Highway Patrol Colonel Kenny Lancaster Jr. “
Nearly half of all highway
deaths each year in
While highway deaths have
increased so have DUI arrests by the South Carolina Highway Patrol. In 2006, the
Patrol made 8,650 arrests. That number jumped to 9,625 the next year and to
11,348 in 2008.
The DUI team
has one mission: to reduce highway collisions and fatalities caused by impaired
driving. The team will place its full attention and enforcement resources on
this single safety issue – a technique that worked well in encouraging more
motorists to buckle up after the primary safety belt law passed in 2005. A
number of special enforcement efforts were aimed at getting people to observe
the new law.
This highly
trained unit of troopers will fan out across the state. Every Troop will reap
the benefits of the teams, especially in their DUI trouble spots. The number of
troopers working in any one Troop will vary based on need. Sometimes the team
will work alone and sometimes with other troopers or law enforcement on special
saturation patrols, at checkpoints and other enforcement efforts.
The members of the team were
chosen based on their ability and track record to apprehend and successfully
prosecute DUI offenders.
Mark Keel, director of the
South Carolina Department of Public Safety, emphasized that impaired driving
isn’t limited to driving under the influence of alcohol and that this team will
focus on all forms of impaired driving.
“Many people are of the
impression that they can only be arrested for driving under the influence of
alcohol, but this problem extends beyond that. The law in
The team kicks off at a time
when the South Carolina Department of Public Safety, the parent agency of the
Highway Patrol, has launched a multimedia public information blitz to educate
the public about drinking and driving.
Pictures of victims and
public service announcements will inundate the air waves, movie theaters and
billboards in the coming weeks. Additionally, the Highway Patrol and local law
enforcement will distribute citation holders at traffic stops with the faces of
real
Last year,
seven people were killed during the July 4 holiday, which ran from Friday to
Sunday. This year, the official July 4 period will run from Thursday at 6 p.m.
until Sunday at midnight. Since Memorial Day weekend, 100 people had already
died on
The
Click on
Attachments Below:
Statewide breakdown of DUI statistics
Colonel Kenny Lancaster’s remarks at news conference
One of many DUI billboards going up
around the state
Director Mark Keel speaks at news conference
