MANCHESTER — Township police will increase impaired-driving enforcement Wednesday as part of a statewide campaign honoring a young naval officer whose death helped change New Jersey law.
Patrol officers will participate in the John Elliott Memorial Enforcement Initiative, a daylong effort organized by the New Jersey State Association of Chiefs of Police. Departments across the state are expected to conduct additional patrols, public education and sobriety checkpoints where appropriate on July 22.
The initiative commemorates U.S. Navy Ensign John R. Elliott, an Egg Harbor Township resident and U.S. Naval Academy graduate who was killed by an impaired driver on July 22, 2000.
U.S. Naval Academy Class of 2000
Elliott, who was preparing to attend Naval Flight School, was traveling home to celebrate his mother’s birthday when his vehicle was struck. Authorities said the other driver had been arrested on a DWI charge earlier that night but was released to a friend and later returned to the road while still impaired.
The crash led to the adoption of John’s Law, which requires vehicles involved in DWI arrests to be impounded for 12 hours. The measure is intended to prevent accused impaired drivers from immediately regaining access to their vehicles.
Manchester police said drivers should expect heightened enforcement throughout the day and evening.
“This initiative honors the life of Ensign John Elliott in the most meaningful way possible — by taking impaired drivers off our roads before they have the opportunity to destroy another family,” Collingswood Police Chief Kevin Carey, president of the chiefs association, said in a statement.
The campaign also promotes the HERO Campaign for Designated Drivers, which Elliott’s family created after his death to encourage people to arrange sober transportation.
Michael J. Rizol Jr., director of the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety, said impaired-driving crashes are preventable and that combining education with visible enforcement can help save lives.
The enforcement effort is part of New Jersey’s Goal Zero movement, which seeks to reduce traffic deaths and serious injuries by targeting dangerous driving behaviors.
Manchester police urged residents attending summer gatherings to arrange transportation before drinking or using impairing substances. Options include choosing a designated driver, taking public transportation or using a taxi or rideshare service.
