By Jacqueline Carpenter From RCIPS

RCIPS Launches 2016 Holiday Safety Campaign with Focus on Road Safety

Yesterday afternoon, 7 December, the RCIPS Traffic Management Unit began its intensified road enforcement operations for the holiday season, which will continue throughout December until 3 January. These enforcement operations will be the cornerstone of the RCIPS 2016 Holiday Safety Campaign, which will focus heavily on preventing drunk driving and road accidents, as well as increasing awareness about fraud and burglary prevention during a period of increased consumer spending.

“Our intention is to make everyone’s December as safe and crime-free as possible, so that the season can be enjoyed,” said Derek Byrne, Commissioner of Police, “but since this time of year usually brings with it increased drinking and spending, there are always some risks to be managed.”

Police started their first traffic stops within their end-of-year operations on West Bay Road during the late afternoon yesterday.  Several officers with the Special Constabulary who have been trained in traffic enforcement will also be joining traffic officers to help man the increased number of operations over the next month.

“We are employing some different tactics in order to increase the effectiveness of our traffic stops,” said Inspector Ian Yearwood, Head of the Traffic Management Unit, “and there is a very good chance that those who think they can just avoid them somehow will have a hard time doing so.  The better option is to just have a designated driver and not drink and drive.”

The penalty for driving under the influence is disqualification from driving for at least one year, with an increased period of disqualification up to 5 years dependent on the level of intoxication when the offending driver was stopped.

“Our point here is not to ruin someone’s Christmas with a DUI,” said Chris Duggan, Commandant of the Special Constabulary, “we just ask that people really think about the consequences before getting behind the wheel – the risk is not worth it.”

At this time last year there were 2,233 accidents to which a police constable attended, while already this year to date there have been 2,435.  Similarly, were 110 arrests for DUI at this point last year, while so far this year there have been 128.

In addition to its enforcement operations to reduce drunk driving and other road offences, the RCIPS is collaborating with the Cayman Islands Motorcycle Riders Association to promote a public safety announcement on the dangers of drunk driving, which will be released on 15 December, in collaboration with Camana Bay Regal Cinemas.  RCIPS officers will also be making media appearances throughout the month to provide crime prevention tips on fraud prevention and home and business security, as increased consumer spending at the end of the year often creates opportunities for criminals, especially in the online environment.

Image:  Inspector Ian Yearwood and Commandant Chris Duggan with officers from the RCIPS Traffic Management Unit and Special Constabulary