Issue link: https://newsleader.uberflip.com/i/98836
Sarasota News Leader December 14, 2012 Page 51 ���DRIVE SOBER OR GET PULLED OVER��� INITIATIVE UNDER WAY Law enforcement agencies across the state are launching ���Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over��� crackdowns to stop impaired drivers and to save lives on Florida���s roadways, the Florida Department of Transportation has announced. arrest impaired drivers. If you are caught drinking and driving impaired, you will be arrested. No warnings. No excuses.��� ���Officers will be aggressively looking for impaired drivers and will arrest anyone caught driving impaired,��� an FDOT news release points out. Enforcement efforts will include sobriety checkpoints and heavy enforcement through Jan. 1, the release adds. The crackdown began Dec. 12. During 2011 there were 920 fatalities suspected to be alcohol-related in Florida resulting from motor vehicle traffic crashes, the release points out. ���The holiday season is a particularly dangerous time,��� the release notes. ���Nationally, in December, approximately 30 percent of all fatalities in motor vehicle traffic crashes involve alcohol-impaired drivers,��� the release adds. ���Lots of folks will be out during this busy holiday season, enjoying themselves and the holiday festivities, and we want everyone to be safe on our roadways��� said Lora Hollingsworth, FDOT chief safety officer, in the release. ���That���s why our law enforcement partners will be stepping up efforts to catch and It is illegal in Florida to drive with a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .08 or higher, the release points out. Violators face jail time, loss of driver���s license ���and steep financial consequences such as higher insurance rates, attorney fees, court costs, lost time at work, and the potential loss of job,��� the release adds. MASON, HINES ELECTED TO TOP COMMISSION POSTS Commissioner Carolyn J. Mason was elected Barbetta was chosen to serve as pro tem, a chairwoman of the Sarasota County Commis- county news release reported. sion for 2013 during a meeting on Dec. 7. Commissioner Charles D. Hines was elected The commissioners vote to select the posivice chairman, and Commissioner Joseph A. tions, which become effective Jan. 1. Commissioner Carolyn Mason/Photo by Norman Schimmel Commissioner Charles Hines/Photo by Norman Schimmel