Law Enforcement Cracks Down On Cinco de Mayo Drinking And Driving

Today marks Cinco de Mayo, and law enforcement agencies throughout Riverside County are banding together to keep drunk drivers off the road.

Officers working out of the sheriff’s station in Palm Desert will be part of a county-wide crack down on drunk drivers called “Avoid the 30.” That represents the number of local and state agencies involved in keeping our streets and highways safe.

Patrols and sobriety checkpoints will be ramped up throughout the day to nab drunk or drug-impaired drivers.

Extra patrols will be deployed in Coachella, La Quinta, Beaumont, Hemet, Lake Elsinore, Menifee, Murrieta, Riverside and Temecula.

Officers will be working overtime in some communities, thanks to funding by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

At DUI checkpoints that will be set up in several areas officers will not only be looking for signs of intoxication, but checking for valid driver’s licenses. Anyone caught with suspended or revoked licenses could have their vehicles impounded on the spot.

California traffic safety statistics tell us alcohol-related crashes claimed over 1,200 lives and caused more than 19,000 injuries in 2008. A slight decline from the previous year.

But the way law enforcement looks at it: why take the risk?

If you’re going to go out and celebrate take along a designated driver.

A quick history lesson: Cinco de Mayo is celebrated to mark the victory of the Mexican militia over the invading French army at the Battle of Puebla in 1862.