Law enforcement agencies throughout South County will step up
efforts to arrest drunken and reckless drivers during the long
Labor Day weekend, which begins today.
Law enforcement agencies throughout South County will step up efforts to arrest drunken and reckless drivers during the long Labor Day weekend, which begins today.
For many, the end-of-summer holiday weekend means picnics and parties with family and friends, one last summer outing on the lake or in the park, and many times alcohol is included, creating an extra concern for law enforcement personnel, according to authorities.
In Gilroy, police will be out in force.
“We are not going to have any checkpoints that we can release the location of, but our practice is usually to staff with extra officers specifically looking for DUIs on holiday nights, in this case, Friday night, Saturday night and Sunday night,” Sgt. Jim Gillio said.
In Morgan Hill, one of the motorcycle traffic officers has been moved to a later shift.
Beginning at 9 p.m. Saturday, there will be officers conducting a checkpoint on Tennant Avenue at Butterfield Boulevard.
The four-day blitz starts at the first minute of Friday and ends at midnight Monday. County law enforcement agencies are joining a nationwide summer DUI prevention effort sponsored by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that focuses on combining high-visibility enforcement with heightened public awareness.
The Hollister-Gilroy and San Jose offices of the California Highway Patrol have assigned nearly all available officers to patrol the highways all weekend long.
Some cities, including Mountain View, Cupertino, Saratoga and Los Altos Hills, will see extra patrols aimed at catching drinking or drugged drivers.
All departments will emphasize DUI enforcement with officers on regular beats.
Avoid the 13 is sponsored by the Santa Clara County Police Chiefs Association, said Chief Lynne Johnson of the Palo Alto Police Department, campaign chairwoman. It has been in operation since 1973, the first countywide DUI crackdown in the state.
Officers put handcuffs around the wrists of 125 DUI suspects during last year’s Labor Day weekend crackdown, a 42 percent bump over the previous year. The county escaped DUI deaths in both years.
“Here are the three best things you can do to fight the effects of DUI,” Johnson said. “Buckle your seat belt so you have less chance of being hurt in a crash. Designate a sober driver to get everyone else home from a party. Dial 911 from your mobile phone to let us know about dangerous drivers on the road and we’ll go right out after them.”
“There are millions of cell phones in California,” said Director Christopher J. Murphy of the California Office of Traffic Safety.
There are 41 Avoid campaigns in California, each named for the number of law enforcement agencies in each county. They involve more than 450 law enforcement agencies and hit the roads again for a 22-day winter holiday crackdown starting Dec. 14 and ending at midnight on Jan. 2.
