DUI doesn’t just mean alcohol consumption Page 3A

Dui/driver’s license checkpoint planned this weekend

The Porterville Police Department Traffic Unit will conduct a DUI and driver’s license checkpoint from 8:30 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. on Friday, July 28, at an undisclosed location within the city limits.

Porterville Police Sgt. Mark Knox said in recent years, California has seen a disturbing increase in drug-impaired driving crashes. He said the Porterville Police Department supports the new effort from the Office of Traffic Safety that aims to educate all drivers that “DUI Doesn’t Just Mean Booze.”

“If you take prescription drugs, particularly those with a driving or operating machinery warning on the label, you might be impaired enough to get a DUI,” Knox said, adding that marijuana can also be impairing, especially in combination with alcohol or other drugs, and can result in a DUI.

Knox said the deterrent effect of High Visibility Enforcement using both DUI checkpoints and DUI saturation patrols has proven to lower the number of persons killed and injured in alcohol or drug impaired crashes. Research shows that crashes involving an impaired driver can be reduced by up to 20 percent when well-publicized proactive DUI operations are conducted routinely. DUI checkpoints like this one are placed in locations based on collision statistics and frequency of DUI arrests, affording the greatest opportunity for achieving drunk and drugged driving deterrence. Locations are chosen with safety considerations for the officers and the public.

In California, Knox said alcohol-involved collisions led to 1,155 deaths and nearly 24,000 serious injuries in 2014 because someone failed to designate a sober driver. Over the course of the past three years, Porterville PD officers have investigated 101 DUI collisions, which he said claimed 0 lives and resulted in another 50 injuries.

Knox said officers will look for signs of alcohol and/or drug impairment, with officers checking drivers for proper licensing, delaying motorists only momentarily. When possible, specially-trained officers will be available to evaluate those suspected of drug-impaired driving, which he said now accounts for a growing number of impaired driving crashes.

Knox said studies of California drivers have shown that 30 percent of drivers in fatal crashes had one or more drugs in their systems. A study of active drivers showed more tested positive for drugs that may impair driving (14 percent) than did for alcohol (7.3 percent). Of the drugs, marijuana was most prevalent, at 7.4 percent, slightly more than alcohol.

Knox said everyone should be mindful that if you’re taking medication — whether prescription or over-the-counter — drinking even small amounts of alcohol can greatly intensify the impairment affects.

Knox said drivers are encouraged to download the Designated Driver VIP, or “DDVIP,” free mobile application for Android or iphone. The DDVIP application helps find nearby bars and restaurants that feature free incentives for the designated sober driver, from free non-alcoholic drinks to free appetizers and more. The feature-packed application even has social media tie-ins and even a tab for the non-dd to call Uber, Lyft or Curb.

Knox said drivers caught driving impaired can expect the impact of a DUI arrest to include jail time, fines, fees, DUI classes, license suspensions and other expenses that can exceed $10,000 not to mention the embarrassment when friends and family find out.

Knox said funding for this checkpoint is provided to Porterville Police Department by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, reminding everyone to ‘Report Drunk Driver – Call 9-1-1’.