Mesa police are cracking down on jaywalkers after seeing a rise in the number of people killed walking on the road.
"It's one of those tempting things to think, ‘it’s not a big deal because everybody does it’," said Mesa Police Detective Nik Rasheta.
Already this year, there have been at least 10 deaths in Mesa involving people who were either crossing the street illegally or got out of their car in traffic. There were 10 similar deaths in all of 2016.
"We're around the aftermath of a scenario where you see a family who’s devastated because they lost a loved one or you see a driver who’s devastated because they hit someone on the road,” Rasheta said. “That changes everybody’s lives."
Mesa launched an enforcement campaign to educate people walking illegally and issue citations. Most of the 10 crashes this year occurred at night and involved adults.
Police say you should always use a crosswalk and, if possible, make eye contact with drivers on the road before you start walking.
