Fewer DUI arrests as calendar hits 2012

Law enforcement officers countywide have made 100 fewer DUI arrests this holiday season than they did just one year ago, according to the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Department.

As clocks rolled to midnight, and as calendars flipped to 2012, the Sheriff’s department reported 375 arrests for driving under the influence as a 17-day anti-DUI effort wraps up.

Officers arrested 475 individuals for DUI over the same period last year, according to the Sheriff’s department. The effort – dubbed “Avoid the 13” in reference to the 13 county agencies participating – began Dec. 16. The numbers are through midnight Jan. 1. New Year’s Day arrest data was not available as of press time.

During its final weekend push, agencies deployed “DUI saturation patrols” in San Jose, Mountain View, Los Altos, Morgan Hill and Cupertino. Multiple DUI/driver’s license checkpoints were also deployed, including one in Morgan Hill.

Gilroy police made no DUI arrests on New Year’s Eve, though California Highway Patrol officers in the Gilroy/Hollister region made one DUI arrest and responded to one DUI incident that resulted in injury.

Morgan Hill police made two DUI arrests. San Jose had the most New Year’s Eve DUI arrests – 15 by CHP and 13 by the San Jose Police Department.

County law enforcement agencies will ramp up their anti-DUI efforts again Feb. 5, which is Super Bowl Sunday. Funding for “Avoid the 13” program is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, according to the Sheriff’s department.