State Police to increase Memorial Day patrols

NEW YORK » The New York State Police are increasing patrols Memorial Day weekend. The STOP-DWI enforcement period begins Friday, May 22, and runs through Tuesday, May 26. State Police and local law enforcement will be out to remove impaired and reckless drivers from the roads.

“As we take time this Memorial Day to honor those who died in service to our county, we remind motorists to make safety the top priority,” State Police Superintendent Keith Corlett said in a news release. “If your holiday plans include alcohol, please arrange for a safe ride home.

“Driving impaired is a choice that often has serious and even deadly conse

quences. State Troopers will be highly visible this weekend, and will have zero tolerance for impaired, reckless and distracted drivers.”

With sobriety checkpoints and increased patrols, troopers will be using both marked State Police vehicles and Concealed Identity Traffic Enforcement (CITE) vehicles as part of this crackdown in order to more easily identify drivers who are violating the law.

According to the Institute for Traffic Safety Management and Research (ITSMR) at the University at Albany, drunk driving killed 295 people and injured 5,340 others in New York state during 2018. Another 314 people were killed in drug-related crashes.

On Memorial Day weekend in 2019, troopers arrested 225 people for drinking and driving, issued 13,693 total tickets, and investigated 134 personal injury crashes, which resulted in four fatalities.

“As we remember our fallen heroes this Memorial Day, we can honor their sacrifices by protecting one another through responsible driving. It is more important than ever that we all do our part to spare our hospitals from avoidable emergencies. Remember to have a plan to get home safely. If you are driving, put your phone away, avoid distractions, and follow the rules of the road,” NYS Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Mark J.F. Schroeder added.