State Police Report Thanksgiving Vehicle Enforcement

During the five-day Thanksgiving weekend, which ran from November 23 through November 27, state police augmented their normal patrol force with additional troopers in seeking out drunk drivers and aggressive drivers, according to state police spokesman Lieutenant J. Paul Vance.

The enforcement project included a series of sobriety checkpoints held across the state.

State police made 1,376 arrests for speeding and 417 arrests for failure to wear seatbelts.

Also, state police made 2,745 arrests for various hazardous moving violations, including offenses such as unsafe lane changes, following too closely, illegal use of a handheld cellphone, and failure to use directional signals, among other violations.

State police arrested 65 motorists on charges of driving under the influence. They investigated 389 motor vehicle accidents, of which 50 accidents involved injuries. Two fatal accidents occurred, one in Marlborough, and one in East Hartford.

Overall, state police received 9,728 calls for service during the five-day period.

By comparison, during the 2010 Thanksgiving weekend, state police arrested 2,255 motorists for speeding, issued 151 seatbelt violations, made 3,411 arrests for hazardous moving violations, and arrested 80 motorists for driving under the influence.

Also, during the 2010 Thanksgiving period, state police investigated 391 accidents, of which 57 involved injuries. There was one fatal accident during that period, according to Lt Vance.