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State Trooper Uses Emojis to Deliver Drunken Driving Message

ANDERSON, S.C. (AP) -- South Carolina is starting a campaign against drinking and driving based on a trooper's tweets using the little graphic icons called emojis on his smartphone.

The Anderson Independent-Mail reports the Highway Patrol already has 130 billboards up and will include Sgt. Bob Beres' message at convenience stores and high school football tickets.

The emojis show an alcoholic drink, the plus sign and a car with an equal sign leading to a police car. The message is drinking plus driving equals arrest.

Beres says emojis are a simple way to communicate. His mom is Hungarian and speaks little English, but she understands.

Beres says he started his emoji-based tweets in October after severe flooding in the state and noticed they got more attention than messages with just words.

(Copyright 2016 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved

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