BALTIMORE — Ready for St. Patrick's Day? So are the police.
Maryland State Police are warning that they'll be doing saturation patrols through March 20 "in areas known to have a higher number of DUI crashes or arrests."
St. Patrick's Day falls on a Thursday this year, which could mean the weekend will start early for many residents.
State Police said they will be doing special patrols, mostly focused on drug-involved or alcohol-involved driving, in the following areas:
—I-695, Route 43, Route 1 and Route 150 in Baltimore County
—State routes around Bel Air
—Route 40 in Cecil County
Police noted that 120 people died in 2020 on Maryland roads from impaired-driving crashes. Impaired drivers also injured more than 2,600 people in 2020.
MSP is urging those attending St. Patrick's Day events to have a designated driver, consider using public transit or ride-share service, not let friends drive if they seem impaired, and call police to report possible impaired drivers.
