Drunk Driving Blamed for NYE Wreck; Police Chief Vows to Crack Down
By: Homa Bash
Updated: January 1, 2013
A flipped van, a run from the law and a drunk driving arrest.
That's how police say 50-year-old Stuart Miller started off his new year.
"We're fortunate nobody died tonight in this accident, but collectively, we've got to change culture here in Abilene," said Police Chief Stan Stanridge Tuesday morning on scene at the wreck.
Police arrested Miller in the city's sole drunk driving wreck on New Year's Eve, just half an hour after the clock struck midnight.
They said he drove his truck into a van at S. Clack St. and Buffalo Gap Rd., forcing it to flip, and then tried to flee the scene.
He was caught a block away because his car was too badly damaged to drive.
"We located the vehicle and the driver is now going to jail for DWI and the passenger is going to jail for public intoxication," Stanridge said.
In 2012, the Abilene Police Department rolled out its "Stay Alive -- Don't Drink and Drive" campaign.
Not only is it something Chief Stanridge wants to continue into the new year, it's a slogan he's vowing to enforce even more.
"My message is pretty clear for 2013: behavior will change in Abilene," he said. "We cannot afford the cost of DWIs."
And with the minimum cost of a DWI running $17,000 in Texas, according to DPS Senior Trooper Spark Dean, it's a cost you can't afford either.
There were a total of four DWI arrests across Taylor County and ten arrests for public intoxication on New Year's Eve, according to jail records.
APD had several overtime officers on duty in case of an increased call load and DPS also beefed up patrols.
Police said one of the reasons it may have been such a quiet night is because the holiday fell on a Monday night.
That's how police say 50-year-old Stuart Miller started off his new year.
"We're fortunate nobody died tonight in this accident, but collectively, we've got to change culture here in Abilene," said Police Chief Stan Stanridge Tuesday morning on scene at the wreck.
Police arrested Miller in the city's sole drunk driving wreck on New Year's Eve, just half an hour after the clock struck midnight.
They said he drove his truck into a van at S. Clack St. and Buffalo Gap Rd., forcing it to flip, and then tried to flee the scene.
He was caught a block away because his car was too badly damaged to drive.
"We located the vehicle and the driver is now going to jail for DWI and the passenger is going to jail for public intoxication," Stanridge said.
In 2012, the Abilene Police Department rolled out its "Stay Alive -- Don't Drink and Drive" campaign.
Not only is it something Chief Stanridge wants to continue into the new year, it's a slogan he's vowing to enforce even more.
"My message is pretty clear for 2013: behavior will change in Abilene," he said. "We cannot afford the cost of DWIs."
And with the minimum cost of a DWI running $17,000 in Texas, according to DPS Senior Trooper Spark Dean, it's a cost you can't afford either.
There were a total of four DWI arrests across Taylor County and ten arrests for public intoxication on New Year's Eve, according to jail records.
APD had several overtime officers on duty in case of an increased call load and DPS also beefed up patrols.
Police said one of the reasons it may have been such a quiet night is because the holiday fell on a Monday night.
