North Yorkshire Police have already made 41 arrests for drink and drug driving in the first nine days of their Christmas crackdown campaign.
This figure represents a 70% increase on arrests made at the same point last year. By 9 December 2015 Police had made 24 arrests in total – 20 for drink driving and four for drug driving.
Since the start of the campaign on 1 December 2016, 29 arrests have been made for drink driving and 12 for drug driving. The highest drink driving reading recorded so far, was been provided by a 36-year-old man from York who was arrested on the first day of the campaign. Stuart Gareth Williams of Wigginton, York blew 118ug – just under three and a half times the legal limit (35 microgrammes per 100 millilitres of breath.)
He appeared at York Magistrates on Friday 9 December 2016 and received a 27 month driving ban, was ordered to pay an £85 victim surcharge and given a seven week curfew between the hours of 7pm to 7am.
Speaking about the number of arrests in the first week of the campaign Sgt Andy Morton said: It’s extremely disappointing to see that the messages about the dangers of drink and drug driving are ignored by some. North Yorkshire Police are committed to identifying, arresting and prosecuting drink and drug drivers and getting them off the road. The number of arrests made so far in the campaign reflect the fact that we are out on the roads and targeting those that choose to flout the law.
Year after year, we warn people of the dangers of drink and drug driving and the devastation it can cause. This year is no exception – Lorraine Allaway, the widow of a drink drive victim, has bravely shared her story with us, to show the real pain a family goes through when a love one is killed by a drink driver. Lorraine’s husband Bob was killed when a drunk driver collided with him head on.
