Local DUI crackdown planned on Cinco De Mayo
Law enforcement agencies throughout Riverside Countywill be ramping up patrols this weekend to nab Cinco de Mayo celebrants oranyone else who decides to drink and drive.
The county’s Avoid the 30 task force, named for the number participatingagencies, will conduct an anti-DUI campaign beginning Saturday evening andwrapping up shortly after midnight Monday.
Saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints are planned in Beaumont,Coachella, Desert Hot Springs, Hemet, Palm Springs, Perris and Riverside,according to Riverside police Sgt. Skip Showalter, the Avoid coordinator.
“You should always designate a sober driver before the party begins,”said Riverside police Chief Sergio Diaz. “But, if you don’t plan ahead, andyou’ve been drinking, do not get behind the wheel. There are plenty of otheralternatives that will keep you and others safe and out of trouble.”
Partygoers have the option of calling a cab, using public transit ortaking part in a sober ride program, according to Diaz.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, in 2011– the latest year for which statistics were available — 35 percent of crashfatalities that occurred on May 5 were alcohol-related.
A misdemeanor DUI conviction in California can result in fines up to$10,000, jail time and revocation of a driver’s license.
