Mayor’s Message from Randy Brown: Police to double efforts on DUI checkpoints

Each year, countless lives are lost due to the poor-decision making of reckless drivers. We do not stand for such behavior in Evesham Township.

Driving drunk doesn’t just make you a danger to yourself, but the entire community.

This community has already lost too many young lives since 2007, when I became mayor. There’s no need to lose another life.

With that in mind, the Evesham Township Police Department will be doubling its efforts to curb drinking and driving with more DUI checkpoints throughout the township, through grants.

Our officers will be placed in undisclosed locations to ensure drunk drivers are removed from roadways.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2010, 10,228 people were killed in alcohol-impaired driving crashes, accounting for nearly 31 percent of all traffic-related deaths in the United States.

As they rise across the county, they have dropped in Evesham Township.

Last year, Evesham had zero vehicular deaths, according to Police Chief Christopher Chew, and we intend to keep it that way.
With the use of the Data-Driven Approaches to Crime and Traffic Safety, our police department has been able to track and curb crime in a revolutionary way.

According to the department’s website, DDACTS integrates location-based crime and traffic data to establish effective and efficient methods for deploying law enforcement and other resources. Geo-mapping is used to identify areas that have high incidences of crime and crashes.

The goal of DDACTS is to reduce the number of crimes, crashes, and traffic violations in Evesham Township.

This includes drunk driving.

Alcohol abuse has personally affected me and my family.

My grandfather was an alcoholic. He died at a young age and I saw how the continual abuse of alcohol had a profane effect on his life.
We wish to promote safety and having a clear mind to make good choices.

I recently attended D.A.R.E. graduations at four elementary schools, where our children had finished a course on learning the dangers of alcohol and drugs. This includes what happens when adults choose to drink and drive.

We must practice what we preach and set a good example for our youth so they can make good choices as well.

Residents, please make the best decisions while consuming alcohol. If you cannot drive, call a cab, a friend or family member. Never get behind the wheel after drinking.

Stay safe, Evesham Township.

Mayor Randy Brown