impaired driving Archives

Every available Missouri state trooper is on the road and water this Memorial Day weekend (AUDIO)

May 21, 2020 By Brian Hauswirth

You’ll notice extra Missouri state troopers on the road throughout the long Memorial Day weekend.

A Missouri state trooper clocks a motorist driving 115 miles-per-hour in April on eastbound I-44, near Highway 141 in Valley Park (photo courtesy of the Missouri State Highway Patrol)

Missouri State Highway Patrol Captain John Hotz describes the holiday weekend as the unofficial start of the summer season.

“We know that a lot of people are ready to get out and enjoy the outdoors and travel is part of that,” Hotz says. “Again, we just urge people to be careful.”

During Missouri’s 2019 Memorial Day weekend, eight motorists were killed and another 433 suffered injuries in more than 1,000 traffic crashes.

Troopers are focusing this weekend on speeding, impaired drivers and seat belt use.

Every available trooper will be on the road throughout the weekend, enforcing traffic laws and also helping motorists. Captain Hotz says the Patrol is participating in Operation C.A.R.E., which stands for Crash Awareness Reduction Effort.

“There will be of course overtime projects, saturating areas that we know there is going to be a high number of traffic violations or traffic crashes,” says Hotz.

Troopers are especially concerned about speeding and increasing fatalities, despite traffic being down 50 percent in parts of Missouri because of COVID-19.

There have been 288 traffic fatalities statewide in 2020, compared to 271 at this time last year.

In April, at least three state Department of Transportation (MoDOT) trucks were struck by motorists, despite the falling traffic volumes. And state troopers also clocked a man driving 143 miles-per-hour on Highway 65 near west-central Missouri’s Sedalia in April.

Troopers will also be visible on lakes, rivers and streams this weekend. The Highway Patrol is assigning additional state troopers to the waterways.

Captain Hotz urges boaters to wear a life jacket, and to never ride with an impaired operator.

“We know particularly with COVID-19 and all the CDC guidelines on social distancing, we’ve seen a lot of people taking to their waterways to enjoy that,” Hotz says.

There were seven boating crashes during Missouri’s 2019 Memorial Day weekend. Those crashes killed two people and injured three.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and Missouri State Highway Patrol Captain John Hotz, which was recorded on May 19, 2020:

New Year’s highlights focus on Missouri areas with large number of impaired driving crashes (AUDIO)

December 31, 2019 By Brian Hauswirth

Missouri state troopers will be visible on highways Tuesday and Wednesday for both New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day traffic enforcement.

A Missouri state trooper on-duty in 2019 (file photo courtesy of Missouri State Highway Patrol)

Missouri State Highway Patrol Lieutenant Collin Stosberg describes impaired driving as the most preventable crime there is.

“We have a zero tolerance so we’ll have troopers and our other law enforcement partners out there arresting those impaired drivers, to make sure that everyone gets to their destination safely,” Stosberg says.

This year’s 30-hour New Year’s holiday counting period begins tonight at 6 and runs through 11:59 p.m. on New Year’s Day. During last year’s 102-hour holiday counting period, 11 Missouri motorists were killed and another 447 suffered injuries in 1,301 traffic crashes.

“We’ll have troopers working all over, especially those areas that are known for a high number of impaired driving crashes and incidents,” says Stosberg.

This year’s counting period is 30-hours, because New Year’s Day is a Wednesday.

Lt. Stosberg encourages anyone who drinks alcohol to use a designated driver or to use a taxi or ride share service.

Troopers are also assisting motorists who run out of gas or need assistance for things like a flat tire. Anyone who faces a traffic emergency should call *55 on their cell phone.

Click here to listen to the full interview between Missourinet’s Brian Hauswirth and Missouri State Highway Patrol Lieutenant Collin Stosberg, which was recorded on December 27, 2019: