Impaired drivers beware

COEUR d'ALENE - Police know that impaired drivers are not stopped by the borders of cities, counties, or states.

The impaired driver in Coeur d'Alene quickly becomes the impaired driver in Post Falls or Rathdrum or Liberty Lake.

On Friday, law enforcement sent that message.

The Coeur d'Alene Police Department hosted what it called a "One Team Concept" media event at Independence Point in downtown Coeur d'Alene.

The event promoted law enforcement partnerships regionally, and across state borders, with officers from several regional agencies showing up for the event.

The so-called One Team Concept is a strategy to partner with regional agencies across jurisdictional and state lines in a unified effort to crack down on impaired drivers.

Officers said the 2011 holiday season is here, and an impaired driving emphasis runs through Jan. 3.

Between 10 to 15 agencies from Kootenai and Spokane counties will be participating in the effort.

Coeur d'Alene police said they want to begin the holiday season with a clear, concise public message that shows unity in its efforts to reduce the number of impaired drivers on our roads.

The department said it wants drivers to know that whatever jurisdiction they are in, impaired driving laws will be aggressively enforced.