MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
a division of the
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY

Troop E Headquarters - 4947 Highway 67 North - Poplar Bluff, MO 63901


News Release

For further information please contact: Trooper Clark D. Parrott
(573) 840-9500, Ext. 221
E08091137
August 9, 2011

EMPHASIS: Troop E Participating In You Drink You Drive You Lose Campaign


The sobering fact is that impaired driving contributes to nearly 30 percent of all Missouri traffic fatalities. In 2010, 234 people were killed and 957 seriously injured in crashes involving an impaired driver. For this reason the Missouri State Highway Patrol vigorously enforces Missouri's DWI laws all year long. To promote public awareness, Troop E troopers, will join other Missouri law enforcement agencies in the You Drink You Drive You Lose campaign August 19 through September 5, 2011.

Troop E will participate in statewide sobriety checkpoints and DWI saturation patrols enforcing Missouri’s DWI laws and keeping impaired drivers off the road. Consequences of drunk driving include jail time, loss of their driver licenses, or being sentenced to use ignition interlocks. Insurance rates increase. Other financial effects include attorney fees, court costs, lost time at work, and the potential of losing one’s job or job prospects. When family, friends, and co-workers find out, violators can also face tremendous personal embarrassment and humiliation.

“Driving drunk is simply not worth all the consequences,” stated Captain George E. Ridens, commanding officer of Troop E, Poplar Bluff. “Our message is simple and unwavering: You Drink and Drive. You Lose.”

The Missouri State Highway Patrol urges all citizens to report any vehicle they observe operating in a careless manner. The public can contact the Highway Patrol toll-free at 1-800-525-5555 or on their cellular phone at *55.

(###)