The following is a press release from the Pine County Sheriff's Office:
"The Pine County Sheriff’s Office has been awarded a grant from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, Office of Traffic Safety. The grant was federally financed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The grant will allow the Pine County Sheriff’s Office to have a deputy whose sole duties will be “traffic enforcement”, with an emphasis on “IMPAIRED DRIVERS”. The grant period will run from October 1, 2019 through September 30, 2020.
The Pine County Sheriff’s Office was selected from among twenty other counties (two tied at 20th), whose impaired driving deaths, ranked in the top twenty in Minnesota for a five-year period (2013-2017). There are no matching funds required by the county. The deputy assigned to the grant position will work a variety of shifts and areas, with some selected days per the grant requirement. Again, the sole duty of the deputy assigned will be traffic enforcement with an emphasis on DWI related offenses in hopes of reducing the number of impaired driving deaths in Pine County. The Pine County Board of Commissioners officially acknowledged the grant at their August 20, 2019 meeting.
The Pine County Sheriff’s Office hopes all drivers make good choices in choosing not to drive impaired. Always remember to line up a sober driver when going out to drink."
