Law enforcement plans for DUI enforcement over Halloween weekend

Law enforcement made 250 arrests during last year’s enforcement period

From Oct. 29-Nov. 2, law enforcement will be on heightened alert for impaired drivers during Halloween weekend. The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) is working with Colorado State Patrol (CSP) and law enforcement agencies across the state to help keep impaired drivers off of Colorado roadways during the weekend. Local authorities encourage travelers to do so responsibly and with COVID-19 guidelines in mind.

“If consuming alcohol is a part of your Halloween plan this coming weekend, expand your plan to include a designated sober driver or plan not to drive. Decide that drinking and driving is not an option,” said Matthew Packard,

Chief of the Colorado State Patrol. “As holiday celebrations often lead to an increase of impaired drivers, our plan includes increasing our presence and enforcement activities on Colorado roadways.”

Of the 461 recorded statewide passenger vehicle fatalities that have happened on Colorado roads this year (Jan. 1-Oct. 7), 148 of those were due to impairment, or roughly 32 percent. To help keep this number from increasing, 86 agencies plan to participate in this year’s Halloween DUI enforcement. Last year, the fiveday Halloween weekend enforcement period included 96 law enforcement agencies, making 250 total arrests, including five by CSP Troop 3-B of Sterling and four by the Sterling Police Department.

“Ever y one of us has a personal responsibility to be safe and accountable,” said Darrell Lingk, CDOT director of the Office of Transportation. “That includes abiding by COVID-19 guidelines and never driving impaired. Impaired driving is one of the biggest threats to the safety of our transportation network, and CDOT is working with law enforcement partners across the state to remove this threat from Colorado roads this Halloween weekend.”

Most DUI citations issued by Colorado law enforcement are on the weekend between 10 p.m. on Fridays and 2 a.m. on Saturdays, and again from 10 p.m. Saturdays to 2 a.m. Sundays. All motorists need to remember that they can be arrested for impaired driving if their blood-alcohol content (BAC) is at any level above zero, even if it’s below the legal limit of .08 percent for DUI or .05 percent for DWAI.