Washington County Undersheriff John Winchell announced today that the Washington County Sheriff’s Office will participate in a special enforcement effort to crackdown on impaired driving.
While we spend this Holiday Season celebrating with friends and family and looking forward to the blessings of a New Year the Washington County Sheriff's Office along with law enforcement across New York State will take to the roads in an effort to stop impaired driving, prevent injuries and save lives. The statewide STOP-DWI Crackdown efforts start today and will end on January 1st, 2018. Law enforcement agencies across the state will be out in force.
While STOP-DWI efforts across New York have led to significant reductions in the numbers of alcohol and drug related fatalities, still too many lives are being lost because of crashes caused by drunk or impaired drivers. So much for Happy Holidays - in December 2016 impaired driving crashes resulted in 781 deaths. Over a 5-year period that total is almost 4000 unnecessary and tragic deaths! So this holiday season Have a SOBER Plan. Even one alcoholic drink is too many for you to drive. There are many alternatives – Designate a SOBER driver, use public transportation, stay where you are but absolutely, DON’T DRIVE. GET A RIDE!
The STOP-DWI Holiday Season Crackdown is one of many statewide enforcement initiatives promoted by the New York State STOP-DWI Association with additional funding from the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee and implemented by the STOP-DWI Foundation. In addition, the Foundation has created a Mobile App – “Have A Plan” that is available as a free download for smart phones to help find safe rides home no matter where you may be celebrating. Many thanks to the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee for their support of this new technology. Go to http://www.stopdwi.org/mobileapp
We wish you and your family and friends a very safe and Happy Holiday season!