LONG ISLAND (VINnews) — A high-performance sports car once confiscated from a repeat drunken driving offender is now being used by Suffolk County police as part of a public awareness campaign aimed at deterring impaired driving.

County officials unveiled the repurposed Chevrolet Corvette Stingray as a symbol of the financial and personal consequences tied to driving while intoxicated. Rather than auctioning off the vehicle after it was seized under the county’s forfeiture law, police converted it into a display vehicle for community events and public safety outreach.

Police Commissioner Kevin Catalina said the goal is to send a visible message that impaired driving can lead not only to arrests, but also the loss of valuable property.

The Corvette, outfitted with police markings and emergency lights, is not expected to be used for patrol duty. Instead, officials say it will appear at parades, educational events and anti-DWI campaigns as a conversation starter and deterrent.

The initiative comes as Suffolk County continues emphasizing drunken driving enforcement. Officials say stepped-up enforcement efforts in recent years have coincided with declines in fatal crashes, though they stress prevention remains a central priority.

Catalina said the decision to keep the car as a public safety tool rather than sell it was intended as a long-term investment in awareness.

The vehicle was seized after the driver’s repeat DWI arrest under a county law that allows forfeiture in certain cases. Suffolk first adopted vehicle seizure measures decades ago and later revised the law following court challenges.

Officials say the Corvette campaign is meant to reinforce a broader message: impaired driving can carry consequences that extend well beyond fines or license suspensions.