MADD Teams UP with Law Enforcement in Minnesota for “Saturation Saturday" to Stop Drunk Driving Ahead of Labor Day Weekend

Bloomington, Minnesota - August 24, 2023 — On August 26, Mothers Against Drunk Driving® (MADD) staff and volunteers are teaming up with law enforcement in Minnesota for “Saturation Saturday,” an annual effort to saturate communities with facts, tips, law enforcement patrols and sobriety checkpoints to stop impaired driving.

Saturation Saturday kicks off one of the busiest travel weeks of the year and comes at a time when traffic fatalities are at a 16-year high, with 41% of fatal crashes during Labor Day weekend due to drunk driving. In 2021, the latest year for which data is available, 130 people in Minnesota lost their lives due to alcohol-impaired driving crashes.

"Since 2018, we have seen a 27% increase in deaths caused by drunk driving and the number rises as we head toward Labor Day weekend,” said MADD CEO Stacey

D. Stewart. “This ‘Saturation Saturday’ and every day, MADD works closely with law enforcement to stop drunk driving, which is a 100% preventable crime."

From Saturation Saturday through Labor Day, MADD intensifies its work with law enforcement agencies across the country to encourage DUI patrols and support sobriety checkpoints, which reduce drunk driving deaths by up to 20%, according to the U.S. CDC. These prevention efforts coincide with NHTSA’s “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign.

This year’s Saturation Saturday events in Minnesota will include virtual activation to highlight impaired driving prevention efforts by law enforcement during the annual National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over” campaign. Across the country and in Minnesota, MADD staff and volunteers will share facts, victim stories, raise awareness on social media, and distribute materials on the dangers of impaired driving.

This year MADD Minnesota will partner with local agencies in our virtual activation including:

  • Stearns County Sheriff’s Office
  • Polk County Sheriff’s Office
  • Olmsted County Sheriff’s Office
  • Shakopee Police Department
  • New Brighton Department of Public Safety
  •  St. Francis Police Department

“Every 79 seconds, someone in this country is killed or injured by drunk driving. In

Minnesota, we can and must do better,” said Veronica Hawman, Regional Executive Director, MADD Minnesota, North Dakota & South Dakota Region.

If you, or someone you love, has been the victim of impaired driving, support is

available at no cost 24 hours a day via the MADD Victim Help Line 1-877 MADDHELP (1-877-623-3435) or www.MADD.org.

Graphic that reads: #SaturationSaturday - Every 79 seconds, someone in this country is killed or injured by drunk driving, and the number has been on the rise.

About Mothers Against Drunk Driving

Mothers Against Drunk Driving® (MADD) is the nonprofit leader in a movement to create a world where there are #NoMoreVictims of impaired driving. By working in collaboration with law enforcement to end underage drinking and all drunk and drugged driving, MADD has helped reduce drunk driving deaths by more than 50%, saving more than 400,000 lives. The organization is a vocal advocate for tougher sentencing, new laws and new technology, including implementation of the Halt Act. MADD also has provided supportive services to nearly one million victims of drunk and drugged driving at no charge through local victim advocates and its 24-Hour Victim Help Line 1-877-MADD-HELP. For more information or to make a donation, visit us at https://madd.org/and follow MADD on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok, LinkedIn, and YouTube.