Police Release Results of St. Paddy's DUI Crackdown

Results are in from the “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” holiday crackdown on drunk drivers.

During the St. Patrick’s Day holiday week, reducing the deadly dangers from drunk drivers was a top priority as the Oak Lawn Police Department was out in force to arrest those who put themselves and others on the road at risk.

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Oak Lawn police stopped and arrested four alleged drunk drivers from March 15 through March 20. Also during this time, officers cited 83 occupant protection violations and numerous citations were issued for various other traffic infractions.

“We warned partygoers not to drink and drive, and we backed it up with aggressive enforcement,” said Sgt. Michael Acke, OLPD’s traffic unit supervisor. “These offenders needed to realize their actions have serious and potentially fatal consequences, and hopefully, now that they have been arrested, they will not put themselves and others at risk by driving drunk again.”

Sgt. Acke added that drunk driving becomes deadly dangerous when people can get too wrapped up in the excitement of the holidays and make bad decisions.

“The bottom line is if you have been celebrating the holidays with alcohol, you don’t belong behind the wheel. Never drink and drive,” he said.

The recent law enforcement crackdown was funded by federal traffic safety funds through the Illinois Department of Transportation and is part of the “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” and “Click It or Ticket” campaigns.