County police to crack down on impaired driving

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — The Essex County Sheriff’s Office will join with the county’s 22 municipal police departments and participate in a statewide crackdown on drivers impaired by alcohol or drugs as part of the annual end of year “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign. From now through Jan. 1, law enforcement officials will conduct saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints for motorists who may be intoxicated.

“The campaign is our effort to raise awareness about the dangers of impaired driving through high visibility enforcement and public education,” Sheriff Armando Fontoura said in a press release. “During the past five years New Jersey has experienced nearly 40,000 alcohol-involved crashes resulting in more than 750 fatalities. Our campaign can and will save lives during a time of the year when impaired driving increases by nearly 10 percent.”

Fontoura offers the following advice to Essex County motorists: take mass transit, a taxicab or ask a sober friend to drive you home; spend the night where the activity or party is held; if you see an impaired driver on the road, contact law enforcement; always buckle-up, every ride, because it’s the best defense against an impaired driver; and if someone you know is drinking, don’t let that person get behind the wheel.

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