Woman Dies From Hit-And-Run Accident In Johnson County

Johnson County has had yet another hit-and-run death, the second occurrence in the last month. Police are currently searching for a driver who failed to stop after hitting a pedestrian late on Tuesday in Overland Park.

The incident occurred around 10:40 p.m. last night near West 71st Street and Metcalf Avenue. A 35-year-old woman was hit by the driver and then rushed to the hospital by emergency crews. The woman died a short time later from injuries she sustained from the crash. The Overland Park Police Department is currently investigating the incident.

This alarming trend is a sad recent development in the Kansas City area. It is one thing to accidentally hit someone while you are driving, but only the lowest human beings on the planet would actually drive away and leave the person they have just struck to die. Accidents happen in cars, and the penalty for accidentally hitting someone while you are driving is nothing compared to a hit-and-run incident that ends up costing someone their life.

Much like the hit-and-run incident off of 1-35 that cost Christopher Randolph his life, alcohol could be a contributing factor to this situation. People drive when they shouldn’t, make a mistake that injures someone, and don’t want to face the penalty for driving drunk. Randolph’s killer was found, and odds are the person behind the wheel last night will get caught as well.

These incidents should also serve as a warning to those who travel by foot at night. With no reliable public transportation and the way the metro is set up, people unfortunately routinely choose to drive impaired, especially on weekends. All Kansas City metro residents need to be aware that when the sun goes down, the roads are dangerous. That is the sad reality of the area we live in.

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Kansas City Police Detective Cited for DUI

Kansas City Police Detective Cited for DUI

Late last Friday night a Kansas City Internal Affairs police detective was involved in a one car accident north of the river. She was driving an unmarked Police cruiser at the time. Internal Affairs detectives are probably not the most popular members of the force in the eyes of the rank and file cop on the street. I would suspect a few similar situations have been swept under the rug for other Kansas City Police officers. It has been reported that the detective was on call at the time of the DUI violation. I have a feeling this could be detrimental to the young detective's career.

Sobriety Checkpoints Attempt to Keep Drunk Drivers off the Road

Kansas City police continue to crack down on drunk driving through the use of sobriety checkpoints, as 18 impaired drivers were arrested Saturday night at a checkpoint on Wornall Road.

Over 500 vehicles were stopped from between 11 p.m. and 4. a.m., with drivers being arrested for impaired driving, possession of drugs and outstanding warrants.

This is another episode in the Kansas City police’s attempt to cut down on impaired driving, as random checkpoints have been one tool officers have used to cut down on drinking and driving. However, the amount of drivers arrested suggests that despite the known threat of a checkpoint, Kansas City citizens are still willing to drive home after drinking in the downtown area.

While sobriety checkpoints do remove impaired drivers from the road, it is important for police to take more proactive measures to help prevent drunk driving to begin with. If citizens knew of sobriety checkpoints before hand, it could be a measure to help convince them to take a cab or find another ride home. Drivers may still drive and find an alternative route around the checkpoint, but police need to take as many measures as they can to prevent impaired drivers from getting behind the wheel to start. Whether sobriety checkpoints and their consequences will have a long-term effect on the number of Kansas City residents who drive impaired or is simply a method of removing drunk drivers from the road remains to be seen.