The California Highway Patrol’s Maximum Enforcement Period (MEP) for the holiday weekend brought in a few DUI arrests. The Christmas MEP was conducted from December 23 through 11:59 p.m. on Monday.
Officers patrolling the highways looked for speeders, distracted drivers and drunk drivers. The Sonora Area CHP reports there were no fatality traffic collisions in Tuolumne County and four DUI arrests were made. The San Andreas CHP reports they handled 4 minor injury accidents that were not DUI related but one person was arrested for being under the influence. Officers also note “We would like to give a big thank you to citizens that took action and dialed 911 regarding a reckless driver.” The report lead to a “be on the look out” alert and officers were able to stop the vehicle and arrest the driver. A total of 15 citations were issued by San Andreas Officers over the MEP. Most were for speeding, three were for failing to wear seatbelts, and one for being an unlicensed driver.
Statewide during the MEP there were 535 DUI arrests, down from 608 in 2015.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that 35,092 people were killed in crashes in 2015, ending a five-decade trend of declining fatalities in the nation. The Administration calls impaired driving an immediate crisis in the U.S.
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Written by Sabrina Biehl.
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