The Merriam Police Department made 74 stops during its two-week “You Drink. You Drive. You Lose.” campaign. The statewide program aimed to removed impaired drivers from Kansas roadways. Officers conducted overtime patrols to aggressively enforce Kansas impaired driving laws.

Of the 74 drivers Merriam Police pulled over, officers ticketed 14 drivers for speeding, two for driving under the influence (DUI), 19 for not wearing a seatbelt, 20 for moving violations, and 18 for non-moving violations. Several of these stopped motorists had multiple citations while others just received warnings with no tickets. Police officers also made five arrests for non-DUI offenses. Merriam Police pulled over the 74 drivers during overtime hours specifically designated for the campaign.

Merriam Police said no driver refused a breath test during “No Refusal Weekend” on Aug. 19-20. They made one arrest that weekend for DUI. The initiative, part of the “You Drink. You Drive. You Lose.” campaign, targeted drivers who refuse breath tests in attempt to avoid an impaired driving conviction.

Merriam Police Chief Michael Daniels said the police department participated in the two programs to help bring awareness to the problem of driving while intoxicated, and to keep the City's roadways as safe as possible.

"The officers of the Merriam Police Department understand the importance of these programs and did an excellent job making stops for various traffic offenses and looking for impaired drivers," Chief Daniels said.

Merriam Police joined 150 other state agencies during the campaign.