FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, October 28, 2016
Contact: Arriale Tabson
Arriale.Tabson@TN.Gov
Mobile: 615-767-3242
Tennessee Highway Safety Office Increased Drugged-Driving Enforcement on National Drug Take Back Day
Tennessee’s First Drugged-Driving Checkpoint Yielded Four DUI Arrests, Meth Kit Seizure in Rockwood
TENNESSEE – On Saturday, October 22, the evening of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s National Prescription Drug Take Back initiative, the Tennessee Highway Safety Office (THSO), local law enforcement and drug recognition experts (DREs) held a multi-jurisdictional sobriety checkpoint in Rockwood on Highway 27 to focus on detecting drugged-impaired driving.
This was the first sobriety checkpoint conducted in Tennessee that focused mainly on drugged-impaired driving, in addition to alcohol-impaired driving. A total of 39 law enforcement officers were in attendance. The following agencies were represented: THSO, Tennessee Highway Patrol, Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office, Crossville Police Department, Harriman Police Department, Knoxville Police Department, Oliver Springs Police Department, Roane County Sheriff’s Office, Rockwood Police Department, and Rocky Top Police Department.
In total, law enforcement officers checked 428 vehicles. Nine arrests were made, four of which were DUI arrests. One driver was detained after crashing into the checkpoint site. He registered 0.295 blood-alcohol content (BAC) – more than three times the legal limit. Officers also administered 44 citations, including 12 misdemeanor drug citations. Drug seizures included meth kits and hydrocodone.
Due to the substantial success of this checkpoint, THSO’s law enforcement liaisons and DREs will begin hosting more drugged-impairment focused checkpoints across the state. For more information, please contact Arriale Tabson at 615-767-3242 or Arriale.Tabson@TN.Gov. Checkpoint photos are available upon request.
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The Tennessee Highway Safety Office (THSO) is a division of the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security advocating for traffic safety. THSO works in tandem with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to implement statewide programs addressing occupant protection, impaired driving, speed enforcement, pedestrian and bicycle safety, and crash data collection and analysis. Programs administered by THSO are 100 percent federally funded. THSO’s mission is to effectively develop, implement, and evaluate these programs. To learn more about THSO, please visit www.tntrafficsafety.org.
