Labor Day DWI Crackdown Underway In Somerset County

SOMERSET COUNTY, NJ — Somerset and Hunterdon County law enforcement officers are participating in the 2024 "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" Statewide Labor Day Crackdown that will run through Sept. 2.

The campaign kicked off on Aug. 14 where officers will conduct sobriety checkpoints and roving patrols looking for motorists who may be driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs.

"We want our community members to understand that it’s our first priority to keep people safe, so we’re asking everyone to plan ahead if they know they’ll be out drinking," said Somerset County Prosecutor John P. McDonald. "The Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign is an awareness effort to get the message out that drunk driving is illegal, and it takes lives. Let’s make this a partnership between law enforcement and drivers: Help us protect the community and put an end to this senseless behavior."

During the 2022 Labor Day holiday, there were 490 crash fatalities nationwide. Of these 490 traffic crash fatalities, 39 percent (190) involved a drunk driver, and a quarter (25 percent) involved drivers who were driving with a BAC almost twice the legal limit (.15+ BAC). Among drivers between the ages of 18 and 34 who were killed in crashes over the Labor Day holiday in 2022, 47 percent of those drivers were drunk, with BACs of .08 or higher.

Drivers should be safe and plan ahead if they are going to drink during this Labor Day holiday:

• Drivers should secure a designated sober driver or call a taxi or rideshare for a sober ride home
• If a driver finds they are unable to drive, they should give their keys to a sober driver so that person can get them home safely
• When a friend has been drinking and is considering driving, friends should be proactive — take away the keys and help them get a sober ride home.

If anyone spots a drunk driver, dial 911. For more information on impaired driving, visit www.nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/drunk-driving.

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