Law enforcement agencies in the Tri-county area are encouraging motorists to buckle up and find a sober ride home as part of the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over enforcement effort Aug. 15.-Sept 1. The crackdown includes the Labor Day holiday period, a popular Michigan travel time.
“Following a harsh winter, this summer has been a time of fun, travel and celebration for many Michigan families,” said Michael L. Prince, director of the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning (OHSP). “As we get closer to the start of school, extra officers will be out keeping us safe by strictly enforcing the state’s seat belt and drunk driving laws.”
OHSP is coordinating the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over enforcement effort by administering federal traffic safety funds to 150 agencies covering 40 counties. The participating counties in the Tri-county area are Genesee and Saginaw.
During last year’s Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over effort, 267 motorists were arrested for drunk driving and 4,119 seat belt and child restraint citations were issued.
Nine people died in Michigan crashes during the 2013 Labor Day holiday weekend. Three of those deaths involved alcohol and one vehicle occupant was not buckled up, according to the Michigan Department of State Police Criminal Justice Information Center.
In Michigan, it is illegal to drive with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .08 or higher. Under the state’s high BAC law, motorists face enhanced penalties if a first-time arrest is for a .17 BAC or higher.
Michigan law requires all drivers and passengers 15 and younger in any seating position to be buckled up. Children must be in a car seat or booster seat until they are 8 years old or 4 feet 9 inches tall. Seat belt citations are $65.
Grant-funded seat belt and drunk driving enforcement is part of Michigan’s Strategic Highway Safety Plan signed by Gov. Rick Snyder in February 2013.
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