It seemed like a good idea at the time. As part of the Wildwood, New Jersey police's National Night Out event—meant to cultivate closer connection between cops and citizens—officers conducted a drunk driving simulation using a golf cart. To educate people about the risks of DWI, the vehicle is programmed to mimic how a car drives when someone intoxicated is behind the world. In this case, a juvenile was operating the vehicle with an officer riding shotgun. Unfortunately, the golf cart apparently "left the enclosed area and struck several people."
Four adults and one child ended up in the hospital, two of whom were kept overnight.
"National Night Out, is at its core, a night of building police and community partnership," the Wildwood Police Department posted on Facebook. "We look forward to the event each year and many of our officers along with their families are in attendance. This tragic incident is disconcerting to the entire City of Wildwood Police Department, and we would like to offer our sincere thoughts and prayers to the injured individuals."
According to the statement, the Wildwood police have "operated a "operated a simulated impaired operator low speed golf cart course" for twenty years without incident.
Previously:
• King Tut may have died in a drunk driving accident
• Area emu stops drunk driver from fleeing the scene of a crash
• Drunk driving suspect switched seats with dog when pulled over
