Police Begin Statewide Crackdown on Impaired Driving in Michigan
About 100 police departments across Michigan are participating in a statewide crackdown on impaired driving in Michigan.
Michigan State Police say the enforcement will make impaired driving a priority in Michigan beginning today and going through Nov. 4.
Police officers will be on the lookout for impaired drivers with a focus on counties with a high number of fatal crashes involving drugs and alcohol.
West Michigan-area police departments participating include:
- MSP Lakeview Post
- Muskegon Twp PD
- City of Muskegon PD
- Holland Dept of Public Safety
- Kentwood PD
- Walker PD
- Grand Rapids PD
- Kent County Sheriff’s office
- Wyoming PD
- Muskegon County Sheriff’s office
- Ottawa County Sheriff’s office
The campaign is supported with federal traffic safety funds from the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and coordinated by Michigan's Office of Highway Safety Planning.
The month of October was selected because it saw the third-highest number of alcohol-involved fatal crashes in Michigan between 2011 and 2016, with a total 151. Only the months of August (167) and July (159) saw a higher number of fatal crashes.
Impaired driving facts:
- It is illegal to drive with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher.
- Motorists can be arrested at any BAC level if an officer believes they are impaired.
- Motorists face enhanced penalties if arrested for a first-time drunk driving offense with a .17 BAC or higher.
- In Michigan, impaired driving represented 45.7 percent of all traffic fatalities in 2017.
- 359 people died in Michigan in 2017 because of alcohol-involved traffic crashes, an increase from 274 in 2016.