LABOR DAY 2009 DWI ENFORCEMENT BEGINS TODAY 08/21

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office in coordination with the Texas Department of Transportation Education & Enforcement (TXDOT) will be utilizing a GRANT for additional patrols this Labor Day Holiday season for DWI traffic enforcement. The purpose of this program is aimed at getting speeding & impaired drivers off the roadways. Extra Deputies will be out on the streets during the Labor Day Holiday period. The push is to deter drunk driving. The enforcement program begins today Friday, August 21st, 2009 and continues through the Labor Day Holiday weekend until Monday, September 7th, 2009.

Statistics from the Texas Department of Transportation indicate Texas leads the nation when it comes to the number of traffic fatalities where the driver or motorcycle operator was legally drunk. Last year, Texas experienced an increase in the number of motor vehicle traffic fatalities. The 2008 death toll of 3,468 was an increase of 0.20% from the 3,461 deaths recorded in 2007. In 2008, there were 975 people killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes where a driver was under the influence of alcohol. This is 28.1% of the total number of people killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes.

Based on reportable crashes in 2008:

• 1 person was killed every 2 hours 32 minutes
• 1 person was injured every 2 minutes 10 seconds
• 1 reportable crash

Penalties for a first-time DWI offense include :

• Up to $2,000 fine
• 72 hours to 6 months in Jail
• Driver’s license suspension for up to one year
• $1,000 annual fee for 3 consecutive years to retain drivers license

Deputies will be focusing on other law enforcement issues:

• Possession of Alcohol by a Minor
• Purchase of Alcohol by a Minor
• Attempt to Purchase Alcohol by a Minor
• Consumption of Alcohol by a Minor
• Misrepresentation of Age by a Minor 
• Driving Under Influence of Alcohol by a Minor  
• Sale to a Minor
• Purchase of Alcohol for a Minor
• Furnishing Alcohol to a Minor

Our Sheriff Deputies will patrol and arrest / ticket drivers who ignore traffic laws. We continue to enforce the zero tolerance on seat belt/child safety seat use and drinking and driving. We will also focus on aggressive driving, and those who fail to obey the speed limit.

End of News Release

The El Paso County Sheriff’s Office in March of 2001 was the first Sheriff’s Office in the State of Texas to be Internationally Accredited from CALEA and is now the recipient of the First CALEA Tri-Arc award in Texas (4^th in the Nation) to have accreditations in: Law Enforcement, Communications, Training Academy.