The Elk Grove Police Department announced that it will conduct a sobriety checkpoint and several special patrols this month as part of a program aimed at keeping impaired drivers off the road.
A sobriety/driver's license checkpoint is to be conducted from 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. May 18 at an undisclosed location within the city limits. Roving DUI saturation patrols also will be deployed from 7 p.m. to 4 a.m. every weekend in May.
Over the past three years, people driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs have resulted in 78 crashes in Elk Grove, claiming the lives of eight people and injuring 110, according to a Police Department news release.
In 2010, more than 10,000 people were killed nationally in motor vehicle crashes that involved at least one driver or motorcycle rider with a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08 percent of higher. In California, officials said, driving under the influence led to 791 deaths.
Police urge people participating in gatherings or celebrations that involve alcohol to plan ahead and designate a non-drinking, sober driver. A DUI arrest costs upward of $10,000, including time in jail, loss of a driver's license and increased insurance costs, authorities said.
Funding for the the sobriety checkpoint is provided through a Selective Traffic Enforcement Program grant made available by the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
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