In the near future, Sampson County will have one person whose sole responsibility it will be to educate motorists on the dangers of drinking and driving.

The Clinton Police Department was recently approached by Eastpointe Services to house a Strategic Prevention Framework State Incentive Grant (SPF-SIG) for Sampson County for the next two years, with a third year possible. The intent of the grant is to provide education and information to citizens to prevent drunken driving-related crashes involving persons between the ages of 21 and 34.

Clinton police Chief Mike Brim said the ultimate aim is to cut down on drunk driving and alcohol-related crashes so lives may be saved.

Brim noted the outreach targets the male population, notably caucasian and Hispanics. Mount Olive College conducted a needs assessment and created a Community Advisory Panel, which concluded that should be the targeted population. The panel said further input was needed from the African-American population, however they felt males in the same age range should also be included.

The panel is made up of representatives from various community agencies and organizations, including the Sampson Cooperative Extension Service, Murphy Brown, Sampson Community College, Sampson County Sheriff’s Office, Clinton Police Department, Eastpointe, Sampson Regional Medical Center and Mount Olive College.

The need for such a grant was significant in Clinton and Sampson County, Brim noted.

From 2000 to 2005, Sampson County had a percentage of alcohol-related crashes that ranked 2 points higher than the state average. Sampson’s alcohol-related traffic accidents in that time was 7.6 percent, 2.1 percent higher than the state average of 5.5 percent over the same period.

As a result, Sampson County was one of 19 counties in the state chosen to participate in the SPF-SIG grant initiative to reduce the number of alcohol-related traffic accidents in those identified counties.

Brim knows too well the problems of drinking and driving locally. In 2007 alone, his officers made 288 driving while impaired (DWI) arrests, a 71 percent increase over the total DWI arrests made the previous year.

The grant would be used in part to head off such stops before they are necessary.

“This would provide a person to prevent rather than enforce,” said Brim.

Included in the grant is the hiring of personnel to manage education and prevention efforts, someone who could provide outreach to the Latino community. The ideal person for the position will be Latino and bilingual, according to the needs assessment. While Sampson is predominately Caucasian, the Hispanic population ballooned by nearly eight times over a 10-year period, from 1990 to 2000, according to a 2000 Census report.

There is $90,000 available from now through June 30 and, at that time, $100,000 will be available for the 2009-10 fiscal year.

“It has already started, so we need to get the ball rolling on this,” noted Brim.

The City Council subsequently approved the request by Eastpointe for the Police Department to house the grant for Sampson County. The police chief also proposed forming a hiring committee that includes members of Eastpointe.

“It looks as though, if anyone would benefit from this,” said Councilman Steve Stefanovich, “it is Clinton and Sampson County.”

Chris Berendt can be reached at 910-592-8137, ext. 121, or by email at sicrime@intrstar.net.