MADD and Law Enforcement Agencies Nationwide Will Work Together
to Prevent Impaired Driving Leading Up to the High-traffic Holiday
Weekend
IRVING,
Texas, Aug. 19, 2024 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ --
In a powerful nationwide initiative to fight impaired driving
ahead of Labor Day weekend, Mothers Against Drunk Driving®
(MADD) is partnering with law enforcement agencies for the
seventh official "Saturation Saturday" on August 24, 2024. This coordinated effort aims to
save lives by intensifying impaired driving enforcement during one
of the year's busiest travel periods.
"This is an all-hands-on-deck effort to
save lives by ramping up prevention and enforcement efforts ahead
of the Labor Day holiday weekend," said MADD CEO Stacey D. Stewart.
Labor Day weekend celebrations often lead to a dramatic rise in
fatal impaired driving crashes. In 2022, there were 490 crash
fatalities nationwide over the Labor Day holiday period — 39% of
which involved a drunk driver, according to the latest data from
the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's Fatality
Analysis Reporting System (FARS).
In an effort to prevent these devastating tragedies, MADD
volunteers and staff across fifteen states and Puerto Rico will coordinate with their local
police departments to host events, roll call briefings, and
sobriety checkpoints to show support for officers conducting
enforcement operations. The areas participating in Saturation
Saturday this year include California, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Maryland, Missouri, New
Mexico, New York,
Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South
Carolina, Texas,
Virginia, Washington, and West
Virginia.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,
sobriety checkpoints reduce drunk driving deaths by up to 20%. The
virtual and in-person Saturation Saturday events also align with
the annual National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)
"Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" campaign, which mobilizes its
Labor Day high-visibility enforcement efforts in August and
September.
"This is an all-hands-on-deck effort to save lives by ramping up
prevention and enforcement efforts ahead of the Labor Day holiday
weekend," said MADD CEO Stacey D.
Stewart. "Police officers are often our first line of
defense against impaired driving. On Saturation Saturday and every
day, MADD is committed to supporting equitable and just enforcement
efforts to stop this 100% preventable crime."
One of the key elements of MADD's Campaign to Eliminate Drunk
Driving, launched in 2006, is support for equitable and just
high-visibility traffic safety enforcement to both deter and catch
drunk drivers. "Saturation Saturday" is an opportunity to team up
with law enforcement departments nationwide and amplify the message
that if you choose to drive impaired, you will get caught. MADD
urges the public to plan ahead for a safe ride home over Labor Day
weekend by choosing a rideshare service, designating a non-drinking
sober driver, or using public transportation.
Every year, more than 13,000 people are killed and almost
400,000 injured by impaired drivers. Drunk driving fatalities have
increased by 33% since 2019. Every 79 seconds, someone in the U.S.
is killed or injured by a drunk driver — and that number does not
include the deaths and injuries caused by drivers who were impaired
by cannabis or other controlled substances.
Including passive impaired driving prevention technology in all
new vehicles as mandated in the lifesaving HALT Act will eventually
end this deadly public health crisis. Equipping cars with this
passive technology is expected to save more than 10,000 lives a
year and prevent hundreds of thousands of injuries from ever
occurring. But until then, law enforcement officers must continue
their dedicated efforts to keep impaired drivers off the roads.
About Mothers Against Drunk Driving
Mothers Against Drunk Driving® (MADD) is the nonprofit leader in a
movement to create a world where there are #NoMoreVictims of
impaired driving. By working in collaboration with law enforcement
to end underage drinking and all drunk and drugged driving, MADD
has helped reduce drunk driving deaths by more than 50%, saving
more than 475,000 lives. The organization is a vocal advocate for
stricter sentencing, new laws, and new technology, including
implementing the HALT Drunk Driving Act. MADD also has provided
supportive services to nearly one million victims of drunk and
drugged driving at no charge through local victim advocates and its
24-Hour Victim Help Line 1-877-MADD-HELP. For more information or
to donate, visit us at https://madd.org/ and follow MADD on
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
Media Contact
Katie Alvino, Mothers Against
Drunk Driving, 877.275.6233, media@madd.org, https://madd.org/
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SOURCE Mothers Against Drunk Driving