Alaska State Troopers released information Friday on continuing heightened patrols this holiday season, saying they've netted more than a dozen DUI arrests.
According to AST spokesperson Beth Ipsen, from Dec. 12 through Dec. 20 a total of 14 drivers have been arrested for misdemeanor DUIs, with another 14 arrested for driving with suspended or revoked licenses. More than 100 other people were stopped under the Report Every Dangerous Driver Immediately initiative, but weren’t intoxicated.
“Although troopers will focus on DUI enforcement, they will also watch for speeding, aggressive driving, distracted driving and people not wearing their seatbelts,” Ipsen wrote in a Friday statement on the patrols. “The intention of the focused enforcement is to prevent families from dealing with a major-injury or fatal collision on Alaska’s roads on what should be a joyous occasion.”
Troopers have investigated 85 collisions that caused only damage, with another 14 involving injuries and one -- the Dec. 14 Parks Highway death of 56-year-old Talkeetna man James Yow -- involving a fatality. Of some 262 citations issued, 53 were for speeding and another 11 involved seat-belt or other restraint violations.
Ipsen says the holiday patrols, funded by grants distributed from the Alaska Highway Safety Office, will continue through Jan. 1.
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