22 arrested for impaired driving over Halloween weekend

Police made 22 arrests for impaired driving while screening 832 vehicles at seven checkpoints during stepped-up enforcement over the Halloween weekend.

Officers also issued 81 speeding citations, including six for excessive speeding to drivers traveling more than 30 mph over the speed limit, from Friday to Sunday.

Under the county DUI tow law, 18 vehicles were towed after drivers were arrested for impaired driving. Vehicles weren’t towed if they had disabling damages from a crash or if there was a sober passenger who could legally drive the vehicle.

So far this year, police have made 481 arrests for impaired driving and 20 arrests for habitually driving under the influence of an intoxicant, a felony charge that can be brought when drivers have at least two prior impaired driving arrests or one habitual DUI arrest within 10 years.

The 501 total impaired driving arrests this year is a 17 percent increase over the 428 arrests at the same time last year.

“The public can expect the impaired driving checkpoints as well as saturation patrols to continue throughout the remainder of this year,” said police traffic commander Lt. William Hankins. “We will do everything in our power to stop impaired drivers from selfishly injuring or killing innocent victims.

“We need our community to understand: It is up to them to make the smart decision to drive sober and help put an end to these senseless avoidable injuries and deaths that have occurred on our roadways.”

Police said anyone caught driving impaired will be arrested.