LASD Headquarters: Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over

LASD Headquarters - Monterey Park, California - December 10, 2013

This holiday season, Police, Sheriff and CHP will be out in force cracking down on drunk drivers throughout the region with aggressive Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over enforcement.

From Friday, December 13, 2013, to Wednesday, January 1, 2014, state and local law enforcement will be watching for drunk drivers to help keep roads safe for holiday travelers.

The Avoid the 100 DUI Task Force will be aggressively looking for drunk drivers this holiday season with plans in place for sixty-six DUI/Driver’s License Checkpoints, 201 local roving DUI Saturation Patrols, several Multi-Agency Strike Teams, 14 DUI Warrant/Probation Sweeps and two DUI Court Sting targeting suspended drivers who were ordered by the judge not to drive.

The Avoid the100 DUI Task Force is giving fair warning to all partygoers. “Our task force will be highly visible during this enforcement period and those suspected of driving while intoxicated will be shown zero tolerance if they are over the limit,” said Glendora Police Chief Rob Castro.

Unfortunately, the excitement and celebrations of the holiday season can lead to terrible decisions-- and serious legal consequences. Data shows that the holiday season is a particularly deadly time due to the increased number of drunk drivers on the roads.

Nationally in the five years from 2007 to 2011 there were 4,169 people killed during the month of December in crashes that involved drivers with Blood Alcohol Concentrations (BAC) of .08% or higher.

In California during those same five Decembers, 505 were killed and thousands seriously injured.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 32,367 people were killed in motor vehicle traffic crashes across the nation in 2011, and 31 percent (9,878) of those fatalities occurred in drunk-driving-related crashes. Californians witnessed a total of 2,835 deaths with 774 killed in DUI crashes on their streets and highways.

“The December holiday season is the ‘most wonderful time of the year,’ and we are going to keep our roads safe for travelers heading to visit friends and family,” said Castro. “This holiday, if you choose to drive drunk, we will be looking for you, we will stop you, and you will be arrested.”

Drunk drivers often face jail time, the loss of their driver’s licenses, higher insurance rates, and dozens of other unanticipated expenses ranging from attorney fees, court costs, car towing and repairs, to lost wages due to time off from work. Even worse, a drunk driver can cause a traffic crash that claims someone’s life, or their own.

Please follow these tips to keep the holidays safe and happy:

• Even one drink can impair your judgment and increase the risk of getting arrested for driving drunk—or worse, the risk of having a crash while driving.
• If you will be drinking, do not plan on driving. Plan ahead; designate a sober driver before the party begins.
• If you have been drinking, do not drive. Call a taxi, phone a sober friend or family member, use public transportation or call one of your local sober ride home programs.
• Be responsible. If someone you know is drinking, do not let that person get behind the wheel.
• If you see an impaired driver on the road, contact law enforcement. Your actions may save someone’s life, and inaction could cost a life.

Remember, it is never safe to drink and drive: Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.

Avoid the 100 DUI Task Force funding is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that reminds everyone: Report Drunk Drivers! Call 9-1-1.

- Sheriff's Headquarters Bureau - Newsroom