Mississippi officials urge drivers to slow down after 3,000 citations

Mississippi officials urged drivers to slow down, saying speeding contributes to roughly one out of every four traffic deaths in the state and that officers have issued about 3,000 citations, according to a Facebook post.

The post said the state records about 700 to 750 traffic fatalities each year and consistently ranks among the deadliest states for traffic deaths. Speeding remains one of the leading causes of crashes, alongside impaired and distracted driving, the post said.

Officials warned that the toll is more than statistics, saying lives and families are altered by crashes caused or worsened by excessive speed. “Arriving a minute earlier is not worth someone else not arriving at all,” the post said.

State and local law enforcement often cite speeding enforcement as part of broader traffic safety efforts that include impaired-driving checkpoints, distracted-driving campaigns and public education. We will provide more information as it becomes available.