Crime & Safety
DUI Crackdown for Holiday Weekend
Seven people were killed in DUI-related wrecks in California over Fourth of July weekend in 2009. Another 352 were injured.
Bay City News
Police and highway patrol officers are out in force throughout the
Bay Area for an Independence Day holiday weekend crackdown on drunk and impaired drivers.
In Alameda County, sobriety checkpoints are planned in Oakland and Livermore tonight at undisclosed locations. Saturation patrols are also planned for Berkeley, Dublin, Fremont, Pleasanton and University of California at Berkeley.
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In Santa Clara County, extra patrols are planned in cities including Milpitas, Mountain View, Palo Alto, San Jose and Santa Clara. San Jose police will also be conducting a sobriety checkpoint.
In Sonoma County, countywide saturation patrols and two sobriety checkpoints at unspecified locations are planned. The California Highway Patrol will also be providing extra patrols for parking and alcohol-related violations in areas near the Russian River in Healdsburg, Forestville and Guerneville, where problems are common during holiday periods.
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There were 29 arrests by the CHP in the Santa Rosa area during the
2010 Fourth of July holiday period, 26 of them for DUI, officials said.
Saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints are also planned in Solano and Monterey counties. A checkpoint is planned in Salinas tonight at
an undisclosed location between 6:30 p.m. and midnight.
Nationally, 410 people were killed in motor vehicle crashes during the Fourth of July weekend in 2009, and 40 percent of those deaths involved drivers who were legally drunk. Seven were killed in DUI-related wrecks in California that year and another 352 were injured.
Drivers are urged to plan a safe way home before festivities begin, designate a sober driver and give them the keys, or call a taxi, use
public transit or call a sober friend or family member if they are intoxicated. Also, don't hesitate to report drunk drivers on the road by calling 911.
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