Law enforcement ticket 30,500 North Carolina motorists in a week
In the state of North Carolina, a weeklong public education advertising campaign focusing on motorcycle safety prompted local and state run law enforcement agencies to target dangerous driving and riding practices in an effort to encourage highway safety. Last year more than 4,100 motorcycle collisions occurred within the state, resulting in 143 deaths and nearly 4,000 injuries. As a result of this increased enforcement initiative focused on traffic safety laws, local police and state law enforcement officers issued 567 citations to motorists in the states Davidson County region within a seven day period. The effort included 10 saturation patrols and 19 checkpoints, and law enforcement officers issued 70 tickets for seatbelt violations, eight tickets for driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and more than 100 criminal charges including 19 felony charges and 27 arrests for the possession of illegal drugs. According to statistics provided by the North Carolina Governor’s Highway Safety Program, more than 30,500 citations were issued throughout the state during Motorcycle Safety Awareness Week. The campaign also includes a cooperative effort between the Governor’s Highway Safety Program and state and local law enforcement officers to offer motorcycle safety training classes at locations throughout the state. Though the seven day campaign is over his year, more classes will be offered throughout the month of May. More than 196,000 motorcyclists are registered in the state of North Carolina, according to the most current statistics.
