The summer campaign to combat drink driving and drug driving by Cheshire police has got off to a fast start with 70 people having been arrested within the borders of Cheshire within the last two weeks. A month long campaign in June last year brought a total of 108 arrests. The arrests have all been made by local police officers and vehicles within the villages of Cheshire have been actively stopped and checked. The police believe that the figures show that more people are failing to get the message regarding driving with excess alcohol, however, the writer of this article believes that this is an overly simplistic view.
If we assume that the number of people that drink drive on a regular basis remains at a constant, whether it consists of one offs or repeat offenders, then a police campaign is going to increase public awareness of the problem yet only scratch the surface of the offences that are being committed. It is clear from previous campaigns that targeted taking alcohol from youths or speeding vehicles that the police figures for these offences being detected will simply sharply increase. This is not because more people are speeding in the months that the campaign operates for, simply that more detections are possible as more police hours are used to detect the crime. It is further obvious that this is often to the detriment of other areas of crime as the police time budget is finite.
The police have often been accused of misdirecting their efforts but in this instance they are taking the only approach available to them. If one hundred cars passed you over the space of one hour, ask yourself whether you could indicate which one had the driver who had one pint too many with his lunch? Specialist motoring lawyers are acutely aware of how much drink driving takes place and the effects that a conviction has on the persons life. We are often able to give immediate legal advice that will prove very valuable in the long term if you face an allegation of drink or drug driving so making the initial phone call is vital.
By motoring offences solicitor, Martyn Walsh
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