New Mexico authorities issue warning to drunken drivers

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico will continue its push to crack down on drunken drivers through the Labor Day weekend as part of a national effort. The campaign began Friday and will run concurrently with the state's 100 Days and Nights of Summer, in which drivers can expect more DWI checkpoints, saturation patrols and more officers on the road through the end of September. Gov. Susana Martinez says getting drunken drivers off the road is a top priority. So far this year, preliminary figures show there have been 76 DWI-related traffic deaths in New Mexico — down almost 30 percent from the same time last year. Legislative analysts also report that state police officers increased DWI arrests by 80 percent during the fiscal year that ended in June, taking 2,931 suspected drunken drivers into custody.