Five people arrested in La Quinta DUI checkpoint over the weekend
Five people were arrested following a driving under the influence checkpoint in La Quinta over the weekend, authorities said today.
The La Quinta Riverside County Sheriff's Office conducted the checkpoint from 6 p.m. Friday to 2 a.m. Saturday on Washington Street and Highland Palms Drive, according to Sgt. Kyle LaFond of the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.
"DUI checkpoint locations are determined based on data showing incidents of impaired driving-related crashes,'' LaFond said in a statement. "The primary purpose of DUI checkpoints are to promote public safety by taking suspected impaired drivers off the road."
LaFond said that during Friday's checkpoint, 1,950 vehicles were contacted, 34 were subjected to secondary screening, and 15 sobriety tests were conducted.
At the conclusion of the checkpoint, five people were arrested for varying suspected charges and five were cited for being unlicensed drivers, according to LaFond. The arrested individuals included three La Quinta residents (ages 28, 32, and 52), as well as a 35-year-old Palm Desert resident, and a 49-year-old from Lomita.
The 28-year-old La Quinta reisent was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol, the 52-year-old of resisting an officer, and the Lomita resident of public intoxication, while the 32-year-old was arrested due to a domestic battery bench warrant and the Palm Desert resident due to a narcotics warrant, LaFond said.
"Impaired drivers put others on the road at significant risk,'' sheriff department Deputy Robert Wiggs said in a statement. "Any prevention measures that reduce the number of impaired drivers on our roads significantly improves traffic safety."
