Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest.

Kuik.com reports that this weekend starts “Drunk Driving. Over the limit. Under Arrest.”, an event organized by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

In conjunction with the nation-wide effort, the Oregon Governors Advisory Committee on DUII, the Oregon State Police, the Oregon Association of Chiefs of Police, the Oregon State Sheriff’s Association, and the Oregon Department of Transportation will perform impairment-awareness demonstrations at the Portland Police Bureau’s Southeast Precinct. In addition to the precinct’s event, multiple, state-wide agencies are preparing high-levels of enforcement for one of the summer’s deadliest holidays.

Next to speeding, driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol kills more people in Oregon than any other type of accident (such as texting while driving), and as of 2008, 136 people died as a result of intoxicated driving. According to Oregon’s Department of Transportation’s (ODOT) Fatality Analysis Reporting System, Labor Day weekend in Oregon is historically high in fatalities, with nine reported last year.

The crackdown starts tonight, and will include the comprehensive efforts of state troopers, county deputies, and city officers from the Clackamas County area as they team up to stop drunk driving between August 21-September 7.

At DuBois Law Group we know the first step to decreasing impaired driving fatalities starts with awareness, not only of the legal consequences of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, but the life-threatening risks that one takes when they decide to hit the road instead of a motel or friends house. For those reading this, take heed this Labor Day weekend: drive smart, defensively, and if you’ve had a few drinks, wait it out until you sober up.