State Police Increasing Patrols This Fourth of July

It may be a holiday for some of us, but not for law enforcement in New York State.  The upcoming holiday weekend will be a time of increased police patrols cracking down on vehicle and traffic violations and drunk and drugged driving.

The New York State Police says it will enhance the number of patrols beginning at 6:00pm on Friday, July 1, 2022 through 3:00am on Tuesday, July 5, 2022.  Patrols will utilize marked New York State Police vehicles as well as CITE (concealed identity traffic enforcement) vehicles as part of the operation.

As part of the effort sobriety checkpoints will be set up throughout New York.  State Police officers will also be looking for drivers using telephones or other electronic devices while driving.  The NYSP is also reminding drivers to “move over” for stopped, pulled over, emergency, and hazard vehicles along the road.

In 2021 the NYSP says that 10,238 tickets were issued during the Fourth of July enforcement period.  In addition nearly two hundred people were arrested for DWI-related charges.  There were 648 crashes during that period, including two fatalities.

According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, forty-one percent (41%) of drivers killed during the Fourth of July holiday period from 2016 to 2020 were drunk behind the wheel.

Other law enforcement agencies around the state will be conducting similar initiatives, both on their own and in conjunction with the New York State Police.

[AUTHOR'S NOTE:   This post is for informational purposes and is based largely on information received from the New York State Police.]