Denham Springs PD cracking down on drunk driving with help from new grant
DENHAM SPRINGS, La. (WAFB) - The Denham Springs Police Department is cracking down on drunk drivers thanks to a new grant.
The department got a grant from the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission, which gives its officers the ability to participate in the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign. One Livingston Parish woman who lost her husband in an impaired driving accident hopes it will deter drivers form getting behind the wheel while under the influence.
“There’s always Christmas morning, it’s just me and Jackson. For his Beta Club induction, there’s an empty seat next to me,” said Tara Broom.
Broom is from Watson and is a volunteer impact speaker for Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) in Louisiana.
“In October of 2016, my husband was killed by an impaired driver on his way to work, leaving me and my son without a husband and a father,” she said. “He left that Saturday morning at about 5:30 and was hit head on by an impaired driver just outside the neighborhood."
Her husband, Brian Broom was 43-years-old. The woman behind the wheel was high on prescription drugs, says Broom. She got a knock on her door at around 8:30 that October morning.
“The male cop had told me he was investigating a crash involving my husband, and I just kind of stood there and I guess it still didn’t register with me and he said it was fatal, and he handed me his ring and his wallet,” said Broom.
The Denham Springs Police Department is taking a step to prevent more tragic crashes like this with the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign.
“We’re going to have extra patrols, extra people out on the streets looking for impaired drivers,” said Amber Fairburn, public information officer the Denham Springs Police Department.
The grant allows the police department to put extra officers on the road to specifically look for impaired drivers.
“Anything that can give us an opportunity to further protect our community and the people and guests that come to our community,” said Fairburn.
“Our lives are forever changed. That’s just something that’s always going to make something different,” Broom said. “Just make a plan, Uber, call a tow truck, you got a phone in your pocket, call a friend. Yeah, you might not get somebody that’s too happy at 3 in the morning to come get you, but it sure beats the alternatives.”
Tara has a tattoo on her arm. The butterflies represent her, her husband, and her son, and the lotus flower has a quote underneath it that says “when pain comes strength.”
The City of Denham Springs will participate in a saturated patrol in February for this campaign.
In every state, it’s illegal to drive with a BAC of .08% or higher. MADD says there are 10,265 deaths per year caused by impaired driving.
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