The Minnesota State Patrol is launching a new impaired driving enforcement campaign ahead of Labor Day.
Law enforcement leaders say starting Thursday through September 7 there will be more patrols out on Minnesota roads to combat drunk driving.
The initiative brings together agencies from across the state, and at a press conference promoting the campaign the public got to hear from Corey, a man who's life was changed after he decided to drink and drive back in 2023.
"My DWI cost me thousands of dollars," Cory explains. "It cost me a job, a friendship, and maybe most painfully, it damaged the trust of the people I love. All of that when an Uber would have cost me about $45."
Traffic safety officials say they made 600 fewer impaired driving arrests this year compared to last year.
Still, Director of The Office of Traffic Safety Mike Hanson says drunk driving continues to take the lives of drivers out on Minnesota roads.
"So far this year, at least 62 people have been killed in alcohol-related crashes, and at least 179 serious injuries have occurred as a direct result of an alcohol impaired driver," says Hanson.
He says state patrol leaders and communities will watch to see if the trend of less arrests can continue.
