MHP Troopers Keeping Roadways Safe During The Labor Day Weekend
TUPELO-PONTOTOOC, – (WCBI) – It has been a busy Labor Day weekend for troopers with the Mississippi Highway Patrol. Troopers were taking part in saturation patrols, targeting speeding drivers.
There were also safety checkpoints throughout the state, where troopers were checking for impaired drivers and other violations.
It is nine on Saturday night, and troopers have just set up a safety checkpoint on Highway 278 in Pontotoc County.
Troopers are making sure each driver has a valid driver’s license and insurance. Troopers are also checking other things.
“When they come through we’re looking for any and all violations, seat belts, drivers license, insurance card, all those kind of things,” said Staff Sgt. Bryan McGee.
If everything is in order, most drivers are on their way in less than 30 seconds. If there ‘s a possible violation, or reason to believe a driver may be impaired, they are directed to pull over.
While this driver did not have a driver’s license, his female passenger had a valid license, so troopers let them swap seats, and they were on their way.
“It’s not always about writing tickets,” McGee said.
For a holiday weekend, all available troopers are called in to work the safety checkpoints and saturation patrols. It’s part of Operation CARE, which stands for ‘Crash Awreness and Reduction Effort.” Staff Sergeant Bryan McGee is the public affairs officer for Troop F. He says the stepped up enforcement has one goal.
“We want Mississippi, the driving public and anyone passing through our state to be safe and the way we make it safe and they way we make it safe is when we do these kind of things,” he said.
With social media it doesn’t take long for word to get out about the location of safety checkpoints. So after about an hour and a half, troopers moved from Pontotoc County to Tupelo and set up at McCullough and Front Street. The first car through the checkpoint, a suspected impaired driver.
A 19 year old registers over the legal limit on a field sobriety test, and is charged with DUI. He is not the only impaired driver troopers find during the checkpoint.
Tupelo police officers arrive to help MHP with the checkpoint. TPD officers are checking cars heading West on McCullough. Staff Sergeant McGee says getting impaired drivers off the roads keeps things safer for everyone.
“Anything could have happened, trust me, we want everybody to go home at the end of the night,” Staff Sgt. McGee said.
Troopers from Troop F made 17 DUI arrests Friday night, the highest number in the state that evening. And fourteen DUI arrests Saturday evening, into Sunday morning.
The next enforcement period for MHP will take place over the Thanksgiving holidays.
