‘This is an ongoing effort:’ King County officers report 36 DUIs in one weekend
Jun 14, 2024, 5:21 PM | Updated: 5:27 pm
A Milton officer was severely injured while he was trying to take down a suspect on Wednesday in a Taco Bell parking lot. (Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
(Photo courtesy of KIRO 7)
Washington traffic fatalities are at a 33-year high, according to the Bellevue Police Department (BPD). BPD Officer Seth Tyler said the numbers are unsettling and should concern everyone.
He said for the third year in a row, the city is participating in 100 Safe Days of Summer which is coordinated with the King County Traffic Safety Coalition’s Target Zero.
“The Traffic Safety Coalition, also known as the King County Target Zero Task Force, works collaboratively with traffic safety and community partners to create equitable traffic safety programs and plans to reduce collisions, injuries, and fatalities in King County,” stated King County’s website.
Past coverage: Bellevue Police Department has had enough with traffic fatalities
Last weekend BPD alongside the Seattle Police Department and Washington State Patrol conducted a mobile impaired driving unit as a preventative measure to get drivers under the influence off the roads.
KIRO Newsradio acquired a video of a Bellevue officer pulling over a suspected impaired driver, you can watch it below:
However, the numbers are in from last weekend’s event, and BPD spokesperson Drew Anderson gave us an update.
“And over last weekend, the kickoff weekend, we had at least 36 DUIs across the county, and that’s holding people accountable for driving under the influence,” he said.
Anderson said that the overall message to drivers is to be responsible.
“Micki, as we said last week, if you are drinking, when you’re out, if you are impaired, be responsible,” he said. “That means taking a ride-sharing program, that means calling a family member or a friend, that easily could mean just simply as walking home, we don’t want you on the road, we don’t want you driving impaired and it’s because the state has seen its 33 year high and fatalities on the road.
We want to do what we can to bring that down. Doing that is a collaborative effort between law enforcement and the public to do what we can to be responsible and save lives,” he continued.
Anderson said that even though last weekend’s event is over, 100 Safe Days of Summer continues.
“Because as we all know, Washington State, especially in the summer is beautiful. So everyone’s out and about. So this is peak time for when people could be driving impaired. So it’s going to be happening all summer. But this is an ongoing effort that does not stop even after the summer ends,” he said.
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