2009-43
PRESS RELEASE: November 10, 2009
FROM:   The Kansas Highway Patrol
CONTACT: Technical Trooper Edna Buttler (785) 296-6800
For traffic routes: Lieutenant Gregory Harkrader (785) 410-4820

KHP Checks for Impaired Drivers Following the Sunflower Showdown

Impaired drivers arrested in Manhattan following the KSU/KU game

On Saturday, November 7, the Kansas Highway Patrol conducted a saturation patrol in the Manhattan area in an effort to reduce the number of impaired drivers following the Kansas State University/University of Kansas Big 12 football game.

Preliminary results from the enforcement efforts indicate that six people were arrested for Driving Under the Influence. There were 17 preliminary breath tests/standardized field sobriety tests conducted, and 21 vehicles were inspected. The patrol contacted 77 people during Saturday's saturation patrol. Additionally, there were 11 motorists assisted by troopers during the enforcement efforts. Only two people had to be warned for not wearing their seatbelts. The enforcement effort was part of a Patrol RAVE (Roving Aggressive Violation Enforcement) team deployment. This extra enforcement effort was courtesy of a grant funded by KDOT.

A saturation patrol is when many troopers, and sometimes local police and sheriff's department officers converge on a specific area, looking for any drivers who are violating Kansas law.

In the state of Kansas last year, one alcohol-related crash occurred every 2.61 hours. Every 67.05 hours in the state, someone died in a collision involving alcohol.