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New Proactive Policing Strategy Targets Teens

MOUNT CLEMENS (WWJ) - Macomb County will be a test site for a new method of preventing crime and traffic crashes.

WWJ Newsradio 950's Ron Dewey reports state and local law enforcement will concentrate patrols where past data shows a greater likelihood of teenagers getting in trouble and not wearing seat belts.

State Police Lieutenant Phillip Menna says the program is not an effort to single out young drivers.

"We used teen-involved crime and crash statistics to direct these DDACTS (Data-Driven Approaches to Crime and Traffic Safety) patrols but anyone we find committing a traffic infraction or violating the law will be stopped and cited. Not just teens," Menna said.

State Police describe the Data-Driven Approaches to Crime and Traffic Safety (DDACTS) as a proactive strategy that maps crime and crash information to develop areas where the data overlaps to direct patrols, the Macomb County Sheriff's Office, Michigan State Police Metro Post and Sterling Heights Police Department will be patrolling these areas throughout the year as part of the federally funded project.

"The main purpose of this project is to get teens to buckle up to save lives," Menna said.

Seat belt compliance among local teens is nearly 97 percent, a few points above the state average. Still, among the eight teenagers killed in car crashes during 2010, six were not wearing seat belts.

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