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DUII crackdown to continue through holiday weekend
12:09 PM PDT on Friday, August 29, 2008
Police will continue a DUII crackdown through the Labor Day holiday weekend, authorities said Friday.
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"OSP troopers have made 96 impaired driving arrests as of August 25th in support of the national crackdown," said Captain Gerry Gregg, director of the OSP Patrol Services Division. "This crackdown runs through the Labor Day weekend so expect to see more OSP troopers, sheriff deputies and city police officers out there to help get more impaired drivers off our roadways before they ruin your trip."
For the second year in a row, OSP joins Washington State Patrol and California Highway Patrol during the official holiday period, August 29th through September 1st, with an increased focus on Interstate 5 from border to border in each state.
Leaders from each state law enforcement agency hope the extra patrol presence and increased enforcement will prevent crashes caused by the same dangerous driving behavior that knows no borders.
On average since 1970, seven traffic-related deaths have happened in Oregon each year during Labor Day holiday periods.
During last year's Labor Day holiday period, August 31 – September 3, six people died in six separate fatal traffic crashes in Oregon. Forty-nine holiday traffic fatalities were reported in California and five fatalities in Washington.
Driving with a blood alcohol concentration) of .08 or higher is illegal in all 50 States. Yet in 2006 alone, nearly 13,500 people were killed in U.S. motor vehicle crashes that involved a driver or motorcycle rider with a BAC of .08 or higher, according to statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
"It's clear that too many people still don't understand that impaired driving is no accident — nor is it a victimless crime," Gregg said. "So our message is simple and unwavering: if you get caught driving while impaired, you will be arrested. No exceptions."
In each of the last two years over Labor Day holiday periods OSP troopers reported 78 DUII arrests. Over the 2008 Fourth of July holiday period, troopers arrested 94 DUII drivers.
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