‘Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over’

August 18, 2017

Site Staff,

ZANESVILLE, Ohio – The National Campaign ‘Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over’ has officially kicked off and local law enforcement is speaking out.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration started the campaign to make people aware of impaired driving. Muskingum County Sheriff’s Office Captain Jeff Lecocq and Ohio State Highway Patrol’s Zanesville Post Commander Lieutenant Matt Boyd spoke to people at the Muskingum County Fair about the dangers of drunk driving.

“A person with a blood alcohol concentration as low as .02% it starts to impair their vision, impair their abilities for perception, and everything like that,” Lt. Boyd said. “So it’s best if you’re going to be drinking at all to just either stay where it is that you’re drinking or have a sober driver lined up to take you home.”

If caught drivers 21 and older with a blood alcohol content of .08% can be charged with Operating a Vehicle Impaired (OVI). Where as drivers under the age of 21 with a blood alcohol content of.02% will be charged with Operating a Vehicle after Underage Consumption (OVAUC).

Now alcohol is not the only factor over 20% of people pulled over are impaired by drugs like heroin and cocaine.

“Also prescription drugs. You know people are taking pain medications and things like that,” Lt. Boyd said. “It can impair their driving or their ability to drive just as well as alcohol can. When you combined those with alcohol it amplifies the effects of one another. So it makes it very dangerous for people to be on the roadway.”

Lieutenant Boyd asked that if anyone notices strange driving to report it by calling local law enforcement.

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