Thread: Drivers drunk during holiday will go to jail

Drivers drunk during holiday will go to jail

Henry Pierson Curtis | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted August 23, 2006









» Central Florida's role in the biggest drunken-driving operation in U.S. history kicked off Tuesday in Orlando with promises to jail anyone who breaks the law.

Local police and Florida Highway Patrol officials say they will put more cops than ever on the road through Labor Day to reduce crashes and deaths.

"Don't drink and drive, because we will fill up 33rd Street if you do," said Orange County Sheriff Kevin Beary, referring to the county jail.

Traffic deaths during Labor Day weekend in 2005 -- when 44 people died in crashes across Florida -- were nearly double what they were the year before. That was the highest tally in 20 years, according to the state Department of Transportation.

More than half those deaths were alcohol-related.

"We've seen the gruesome crash scenes firsthand, and we don't want to see any more," FHP Maj. Cyrus Brown said.

"High-visibility enforcement saves lives and prevents injuries."

Brown and law-enforcement officials joined members of the national and Central Florida branches of Mothers Against Drunk Driving at FHP headquarters to renew attention to the holiday highway deaths.

"The grim reality is that you or one of your family members will suffer [a drinking-related death or injury] during your lifetime," said MADD national president Glenn Birch of Orlando.

"My son was one of those numbers."

Birch, the first male -- and first black -- president of MADD, described how his 21-month-old son, Courtney, was killed in 1988 by a repeat offender.

"Drunk drivers do not discriminate," he said.

Besides conducting DUI checkpoints, where officers stop and question motorists, this year's efforts will include roving patrols known as "wolf packs."

Working together, officers in squad cars focus on specific stretches of highway looking for moving violations, such as reckless or aggressive driving, that may indicate inebriation, police said.

The Osceola County Sheriff's Office will conduct this type of patrol Friday and Saturday nights as part of the nationwide "Over the limit. Under arrest" crackdown funded by the National Highway and Traffic Safety Adminstration, sheriff's spokeswoman Twis Lizasuain said.

On Sept. 1, police officers and deputies across Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties will conduct simultaneous DUI checkpoints as motorists set out for the four-day holiday weekend, officials said.

The campaign is being backed by $11 million in national advertising, according to MADD.

Police underscored the threat of jail time and appealed for common sense and public safety during the holiday.

"We want to have an incredibly safe community," Orlando police Chief Mike McCoy said.

"Please stay home if you drink."

Henry Pierson Curtis can be reached at hcurtis@orlandosentinel.com or 407-420-5257.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/state/orl-madd2306aug23,0,6623805.story?coll=orl-news-headlines-state

Now in this article it doesn't give the address......but heads-up....don't be driving drunk in Central Florida. This also has a very large latino community....lets see how it pans out.

I wonder if police officers will be allowed to check immigration status during these roadchecks?