MADD Illinois to Join Labor Day Crackdown on Drunk Driving

MADD Joins National Effort with Tens of Thousands of Law Enforcement Officers Warning Drivers: If You Drive Drunk, You Will be Arrested

CHICAGO, Aug. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following advisory is being issued by Mothers Against Drunk Driving:

  What:    Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) Illinois will hold a news
           conference to kick off a statewide drunk driving crackdown that
           aims to keep our streets safe at a historically dangerous period
           -- Labor Day weekend. MADD is working with law enforcement this
           holiday weekend to send the message: if you drive at or over the
           illegal limit, you will be under arrest.

           The Illinois effort is part of a national drunk driving
           crackdown, You Drink & Drive. You Lose., sponsored by the
           National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in
           partnership with MADD, the Illinois Department of Transportation
           (IDOT), Chicago Police Department and Illinois State Police.
           During the crackdown, law enforcement officials will intensify
           enforcement of drunk driving laws by conducting high-visibility
           enforcement efforts such as sobriety checkpoints and saturation
           patrols.

  When:    Tuesday, August 28th
           10:00 a.m. CDT

  Where:   Navy Pier
           South Gateway Park
           600 East Grand Avenue
           Chicago, IL 60611

  Who:     Attending the press conference will be:
             -- Nicole Nason, Administrator, National Highway Traffic Safety
                Administration (NHTSA)
             -- Glynn Birch, President, MADD
             -- Commander Len Stalworth, Illinois State Police
             -- Superintendent Dana Starks, Chicago Police Department
             -- Mike Stout, Director, Division of Traffic Safety, Illinois
                Department of Transportation
             -- Cecilia Plekavic, a family victim of drunk driving
             -- Stephen Carr, Executive Director, MADD Illinois

  Why:     Drunk driving is the nation's most frequently committed violent
           crime. In 2006, 444 people were killed in Illinois by a drunk
           driver with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher.
           This past year, nearly 13,500 people across the nation were
           killed in drunk driving crashes in which the driver had a BAC of
           .08 or higher. Research shows that frequent and highly publicized
           sobriety checkpoints and saturation patrols reduce deaths and
           injuries due to drunk driving. The two-and-a-half week
           enforcement wave in Illinois runs from August 17 - September 3.

           High-visibility enforcement, a proven method to reduce the number
           of deaths and injuries caused by drunk driving, is one of the
           four components of MADD's Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving.
           The other elements include: mandatory ignition interlocks for all
           convicted drunk drivers, development of advanced vehicle
           technology to detect and stop drunk drivers, and mobilization of
           grassroots support.