Police officers quick to write citations in 2004
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“When you’re having a lot of wrecks, the one tried-and-true thing to get the accident rate down is stepped up traffic enforcement,” said McMinnville Police Cpt. Bryan Denton. “And, from what we’ve seen, it’s working because the accident rate is down to its lowest point in years.”
The increase in citations was significant as city police issued 6,629 tickets during 2004, far eclipsing any other single year this decade. The number was up from 2003 when 4,502 citations were issued and 2002 when 4,465 tickets were written.
At the same time accidents hit their lowest point this decade at 825, significantly down from the high point of 2002 when 899 wrecks were worked in McMinnville. Most wrecks involved minor property damage accidents.
Citations technically involve any violation of traffic law or city ordinances. The leading citation was for speeding as lawmen wrote 2,530 tickets to people violating the posted speed laws. At the same time, a major add-on was driving without proof of insurance as 1,209 citations were issued to people who did not have insurance cards or proof of insurance. Tennessee recently passed into law a requirement that motorists carry proof of insurance at all time. The insurance law is generally enforced when the person is pulled over for another violation.
Another newer law also added to the higher numbers, that being the more restrictive child restraint laws which require children to be under special restraint until they are a certain age or height. A total of 44 child restraint tickets were written during 2004, a number police admit was lower than expected, likely meaning most parents are obeying the new law. In the meantime, they were less likely to restrain themselves as 114 tickets were written to motorists for not wearing their seatbelts under the “Click it or Ticket” initiative.
Driver’s license violations were also a major reason for citations with 508 instances. Such violations involve problems with licensure which generally prove to be lack of a valid driver’s license.
One area which also rose, perhaps due to the increased enforcement, were the number of drunk driving arrests. A total of 99 DUI arrests were made in 2004, marking the highest number since 2001 when 117 drunk motorists were arrested.
According to District Attorney General Dale Potter, the stepped up enforcement by city police not only lends itself to higher arrest rates for things like drunk driving, but it also affects the overall crime rate.
“When folks are seeing a lot of bluelights and aggressive enforcement, they are less likely to violate the law for fear of getting caught,” Potter said. “Stepped up enforcement helps prevent crime before it happens.”
The city of McMinnville, during 2004, saw its lowest crime rate this decade.
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McMinnville police officers were quick to write citations in 2004. Here’s a glance at previous years.
Year Citations DUIs
2004 6,629 99
2003 4,502 88
2002 4,465 76
2001 4,727 117
2000 3,984 154