BCSO awarded $73K H.E.A.T. Enforcement Grant

WINDER - The Barrow County Sheriff's Office has been awarded a major, public safety partnership H.E.A.T. grant totaling $73,700 from the Georgia Governor's Office of Highway Safety (GOHS).

H.E.A.T, which stands for Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic, includes the primary goals of (1) reducing impaired driving crashes; (2) reducing excessive speeding; (3) increasing the safety belt usage rate; and (4) educating the public about traffic safety.

The Barrow County Sheriff s Office s H.E.A.T. Unit will develop and implement strategies to reduce crashes, injuries, and fatalities from drugs and alcohol, speed and aggressive driving, and non-use of safety belts within their jurisdiction. The grant went into effect on October 1 of this year and will continue until September 30 of next year.

"The H.E.A.T. grant helps support the Barrow County Sherif's Office's enforcement efforts and is a reminder of their dedication in supporting the GOHS mission to protect Georgians from speeders and impaired drivers," said GOHS Director Harris Blackwood.  "Crashes involving impaired drivers killed 331 people across Georgia in 2009. The chance of a fatal crash involving drivers impaired by drugs or alcohol is much higher than the rate for fatal crashes not related to impairment."

H.E.A.T. programs based on impaired driving and speeding data include 22 Georgia counties and have covered most of Metro Atlanta. The H.E.A.T. initiative was designed to serve Georgia jurisdictions with the highest rates of crashes, injuries and deaths.

"The H.E.A.T. initiative seeks to increase the impaired driver arrests, reduce dangerous speeders, educate the public about the dangers of DUI and provide a high visibility enforcement profile in the communities that need it most," Blackwood said