AVOID THE 12 SETS DUI CRACKDOWN FOR
INDEPENDENCE DAY WEEKEND IN SANTA BARBARA COUNTY

SANTA BARBARA COUNTY- JUNE 17th, 2009

Community fireworks displays are the focus of Avoid the 12 saturation DUI patrols over the three-day Independence Day weekend in Santa Barbara County.

The patrols are set for Santa Barbara, Lompoc and around Buellton, Solvang and Santa Ynez, said Deputy Win Smith of the county Sheriff’s Dept., campaign coordinator.

Also on the enforcement calendar are freeway saturation patrols by all three offices of the California Highway Patrol and schedule adjustments by all four of Goleta’s motorcycle deputies.

The effort begins at the first minute of Friday, July 3, and ends at midnight on Monday, July 5. The California Office of Traffic Safety funds it through the National Highway Safety Administration.

“It can be difficult to track how much you’ve had to drink when you’re outdoors watching fireworks or at a party or picnic,” Smith commented.

“It’s different than being at a bar, where the main focus is drinking. Designated drivers are all the more important. Remember, a designated driver isn’t the person who’s had the least to drink, it’s the person who remains stone-cold sober the entire time.”

CHP commanders of the Santa Barbara, Buellton and Santa Maria squads will assign nearly all their officers to road duty all weekend, said Lt. Marty Maples who commands the Buellton office. “We will deploy additional units all weekend and we have zero tolerance for impaired driving,” he commented.

Officers will be on the road again for an 18-day summer crackdown from Aug. 21 to Sept. 7.