Crime & Safety

State Police Arrest 32 in 'Drive Sober' Campaign

The State Police arrested 32 people on DUI charges and issued 2,199 citations during its "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" campaign.

Rhode Island State Police announced they arrested 32 drivers on charges of drunken driving in a span of 18 days as part of its "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" campaign.

The campaign kicked off Aug. 17 with troopers focusing traffic enforcement on targeting drunk drivers, aggressive drivers, texting while driving and seat belt and speeding violations. 

During the initiative, the State Police made 2,922 motor vehicle stops and issued 2,199 citations for various traffic offenses. Additionally, 32 drivers were arrested and charged with drunken driving.

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One of those 32 DUI suspects was a. Brian Fracassa, 44, was arrested in North Kingstown after a fellow motorist allegedly saw the man driving drunk through Wickford Village. A week later, the man crashed his car in Cranston and was arrested by State Police on suspicion of DUI. During a Breathalyzer test, his blood alcohol allegedly measured at .222 – almost triple the legal limit. 

Though the campaign concluded on Labor Day, Colonel Steven G. O'Donnell (superintendent of the Rhode Island State Police and Commissioner of Public Safety) assured residents that the state police would continue to focus on curtailing drunken driving.

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"The Rhode Island State Police will continue to be vigilant in these areas of traffic enforcement because we truly believe that there is a nexus between enforcement and a decrease in motor vehicle crashes and fatalities," said O'Donnell.

Last week, an alleged drunk driver killed a 53-year-old grandmother after hitting her head-on in South Kingstown. The woman's one-year-old granddaughter, who was in the car, was brought to Hasbro Children's Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The driver (James Mulcahey of Richmond) is facing charges of driving under the influence (death resulting) and others.


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