The Seal Beach Police Department Traffic Unit will conduct two DUI/Driver’s License Checkpoints on Friday, Dec. 28, and Saturday, Dec. 29 at the intersection of Pacific Coast Highway and 1st Street. Both checkpoints will open at 6 p.m. and close at 3 a.m. the next day.
The checkpoints are part of the Orange County DUI Task Force holiday crackdown.
Enforcement efforts will include: five DUI/Driver’s License Checkpoints, 15 local DUI saturation patrols, three multi-agency DUI Taskforce strike team patrols, and two DUI Warrant/Probations sweep. The California Highway Patrol will deploy all available officers during Christmas and New Year’s Weekends. The special enforcement crackdown will through Jan. 1.
According to the Seal Beach Police Department, the deterrent effect of DUI checkpoints is a proven resource in reducing the number of persons killed and injured in alcohol or drug involved crashes. Research shows that crashes involving alcohol drop by an average of 20 percent when well-publicized checkpoints are conducted often enough.
Officers will be contacting drivers passing through the checkpoint for signs of alcohol and/or drug impairment. Officers will also check drivers for proper licensing and will strive to delay motorists only momentarily. When possible, specially trained officers will be available to evaluate those suspected of drug-impaired driving. Drivers caught driving impaired can expect jail, license suspension, and insurance increases, as well as fines, fees, DUI classes, other expenses that can exceed $10,000.
In 2010, over 10,000 people were killed nationally in motor vehicle traffic crashes that involved at least one driver or motorcycle rider with a blood alcohol concentration of .08 percent or higher. In California, this deadly crime led to 791 deaths because someone failed to designate a sober driver.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, checkpoints have provided the most effective documented results of any of the DUI enforcement strategies, while also yielding considerable cost savings of $6 for every $1 spent. Based on collision statistics and frequency of DUI arrests, DUI Checkpoints are placed in locations that have the greatest opportunity for achieving drunk and drugged driving deterrence. Locations are chosen with safety considerations for the officers and the public.
“DUI Checkpoints have been an essential part of the phenomenal reduction in DUI deaths that we witnessed since 2006 in California,” said Christopher J. Murphy, director of the Office of Traffic Safety. “But since the tragedy of DUI accounts for nearly one third of traffic fatalities, Seal Beach needs the high visibility enforcement and public awareness that checkpoints provide.”
Funding for this checkpoint is provided to the Seal Beach Police Department by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, reminding everyone to continue to work together to bring an end to these tragedies.
If you see a Drunk Driver – Call 9-1-1
NOTE: There will be two checkpoints this upcoming weekend (Friday, December 28 and Saturday, December 29) between 6:00pm and 3:00am, both being held at the intersection of 1st and Pacific Coast Highway in Seal Beach. Two separate press releases were distributed.
MEDIA NOTES: To schedule an interview regarding the Seal Beach Police Department checkpoints, please contact Sergeant Steve Bowles at 562.799.4100 Ext. 1603 or via email at SBowles@sealbeachca.gov.
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Sergeant Steve Bowles
Public Information Officer
562.799.4100 Ext. 1603
