The Baxter County Sheriff’s Department today announced it will join nearly 10,000 other law enforcement agencies nationwide in support of an intensive crackdown on impaired driving August 19–September 5, known as “Drive Sober or get Pulled Over.”

The problem of impaired driving is a serious one. Data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows the number of alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities in America fell from 2008 to 2009, but the numbers are still too high. 

In 2009 alone, 10,839 people died in crashes in which a driver or motorcycle rider was at or above the legal limit, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The age group with the highest percentage of alcohol-impaired-driving fatalities in motor vehicle traffic crashes was the 21-to-24 age group.

Across the country, it is illegal to drive with a blood alcohol concentration of .08 grams per deciliter or higher. According to the latest data, nearly a third of fatalities in motor vehicle traffic crashes involved a driver or motorcycle rider with a BAC above the legal limit – an average of one fatality every 48 minutes.

The crackdown will include law enforcement officers in every state, Washington, D.C., and many U.S. cities and towns.

Deputies from the Baxter County Sheriff’s Department will be aggressively looking for allimpaired drivers during the crackdown and will arrest anyone they find driving while impaired — regardless of age, vehicle type or time of day.

Violators often face jail time, loss of their driver licenses, or being sentenced to use ignition interlocks. Their insurance rates go up. Other financial hits include attorney fees, court costs, lost time at work, and the potential loss of job or job prospects. When family, friends and co-workers find out, violators can also face tremendous personal embarrassment and humiliation.

Remember, “Drive Sober or get Pulled Over.”

For more information, visit the High-Visibility Enforcement Campaign Headquarters at www.StopImpairedDriving.org.