Sheriff Craig Webre announced the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office will join other local law enforcement agencies in participating in the national Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign which runs December 15, 2016, through January 1, 2017. The campaign is coordinated and funded by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission.

Additional deputies will be assigned to saturated patrol efforts, and there will be several checkpoints held in conjunction with the campaign throughout the month of December. The first of these will be a seat belt checkpoint to be held this Thursday, December 15. There will be two other seat belt checkpoints and one DWI checkpoint during the campaign period.

During the seat belt checkpoints, deputies will be checking motorists for seat belt and safety seat violations, as well as other violations such as expired inspection tags. During the DWI checkpoint, deputies will be looking for drivers who are possibly impaired while checking for other traffic safety issues, including but not limited to seat belt usage. Lafourche Parish is a “No Refusal” parish, meaning if a suspected drunk driver refuses a breathalyzer test, deputies will seek a search warrant to have that person’s blood tested.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, drunk driving is a deadly epidemic that takes the lives of more than 10,000 people each year, on average. In 2014, 322 people were killed as a result of impaired driving in Louisiana alone. Alcohol-impaired motor vehicle crashes cost more than $37 billion annually.

Sheriff Craig Webre thanks citizens in advance for designating a driver if you plan to drink. He also thanks citizens for their cooperation and patience when passing through these checkpoints and for recognizing the importance of raising awareness for safety issues.