From August 21 – September 7, over 10,000 state and local law enforcement agencies will be saturating (state) streets and highways during the National Impaired Driving Crackdown. 

The Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest. campaign focuses on high-visibility enforcement and calls attention to the dangers of impaired driving, particularly during the Labor Day holiday.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that there were about 1.5 million DWI (driving while impaired) arrests in 2007 — an average of 167 arrests per hour!

The outcome of impaired driving is sobering: in 2007, 519 people were killed in traffic crashes over the Labor Day weekend alone, and 40 percent of those crashes involved an impaired driver or motorcycle rider with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher. 

In addition, 32 percent of all motor vehicle crash fatalities in 2007 involved an alcohol-impaired (.08 BAC or higher) driver or motorcycle rider.  That’s an average of one alcohol-impaired driving fatality every 45 minutes.

Fatal crashes were four times higher at night for alcohol-impaired drivers.

In Texas, 1,333 were killed in alcohol-related crashes involving a driver or motorcycle operator who was at or above the legal limit of .08 in 2007, 38% percent of the state’s total fatalities. 

Across the nation in 2007, there were approximately 13,000 total fatalities in crashes involving a driver or motorcycle rider with a BAC of .08 or higher.

Motorcycle riders in fatal crashes have a particularly high rate of alcohol involvement.

Forty-one percent of the 2,182 motorcycle riders who died in single-vehicle crashes in 2007 had BACs above the legal limit.

The number of fatalities makes it clear that alcohol-impaired driving is not a victimless crime.

Impaired driving arrests can result in jail time, fines, ignition interlock, loss of driver’s license, work issues, higher insurance rates, and much personal embarrassment.  But that’s nothing compared to losing your life or taking someone else’s.

Use your head.  Never drink and drive and refuse to ride with any driver who has been drinking. 

Remember, Drunk Driving. Over the Limit. Under Arrest.

The Spearman Police Department is a proud supporter of and participant in the national "Over the Limit, Under Arrest" mobilization.

The PD participates daily in efforts to decrease the number of "Drunk Drivers" on our roadways by making arrests through proactive patrol and traffic enforcement measures.  In addition to routine daily efforts, we further increase patrol during peak periods randomly throughout the year.

Officers of the department are all state certified in conducting SFST's (Standardized Field Sobriety Tests).  In addition, each officer is provided a portable breathalizer machine in their patrol car. 

The Police Department, in early 2009, purchased the county's first and only Intoxilyzer 5000 machine, which is housed inside the Police Department patrol room.  The Intoxilyzer 5000 is available for use by all certified operators of the local Police Departments, Sheriff's Offices, and state branches such as the Texas Highway Patrol.

The information below provides the reasoning behind why the Police Department takes Impaired Driving so serious, and operates on a Zero-Tolerance Policy when it comes to DWI/DUI violations.