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The Missouri State Highway Patrol plans to increase enforcement this week for the Independence Day holiday.
The patrol is warning drivers that if they’re thinking about driving impaired this week, the red, white and blue flashing lights of the Independence Day holiday may be those of a patrol car.
The Fourth of July is one of the deadliest holidays of the year due to substance-impaired driving crashes. Local law enforcement will be out in full force July 3-5 seeking impaired drivers through increased sobriety checkpoints, roving and saturation patrols, and other enforcement methods.
“One fatality on our highways is too many, and there is no excuse for driving while you are impaired,” said Colonel J. Bret Johnson, superintendent of the Missouri State Highway Patrol. “Over the 2014 July holiday, troopers arrested 155 people who made the decision to drink and drive and put others at risk. If you’re going to include alcohol in your holiday plans, choose a sober designated driver.”