Drunk driving is no accident. It results from an impaired decision, and it causes accidents.
And this year, it is a contributing factor in a 13 percent increase over last year in statewide traffic fatalities.
The Jefferson City Police Department today joins a statewide and nationwide effort, "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over."
The crackdown on drunk driving will continue through the Labor Day holiday on Sept. 7.
The timing is significant. The Missouri Highway Patrol reports 519 fatalities, including 16 last weekend, in traffic accidents through Monday; the 13 percent increase over last year reverses a downward trend that began in 2006.
"Each day lives are drastically changed or lost in preventable traffic crashes caused by substance-impaired driving," said Bill Whitfield, executive chair to the Missouri Coalition for Roadway Safety.
Drunk driving is preventable. It is not a choice made by the sober mind of someone who recognizes it violates the law, jeopardizes public safety and defies common sense.
"Impaired driving continues to be a huge concern on Missouri roadways," said Col. Bret Johnson, patrol superintendent. "We will continue our year-round efforts of enforcing Missouri's DWI laws and through this campaign create public awareness to the dangers substance-impaired driving causes on our highways."
The numbers are alarming. The patrol reports law enforcement statewide made 314 DWI arrests, 27 DUI drug arrests, 11 drug influence arrests and 127 MIPs (minor in possession) during the 2014 "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" campaign.
But data from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration shows drivers respond well to this type of high visibility enforcement, the patrol reports. Past campaigns have resulted in a 20 percent decrease in substance-impaired crash fatalities.
"In 2014," Whitfield said, "197 people were killed, 703 seriously injured in Missouri crashes that involved at least one substance-impaired driver."
Jefferson City police report the nearly 200 fatalities translate into an impaired driving fatality every 1.75 days. And that does not account for the other consequences, including injuries, hospitalizations, jail time, loss of a driver license, financial expenses, increased insurance rates, attorney fees, court costs, lost time at work, potential job loss and personal embarrassment.
Sober judgment would never invite those risks.
Before you drink, make a plan that doesn't involve driving. That's a sensible, potentially life-saving decision.