Labor Day Weekend DUI Crackdown

Police made at least 33 arrests county-wide during the second day of a Labor Day weekend crackdown on driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs (DUI), said Sgt. Troy Smith of the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Office.

"Avoid the 13" law enforcement agencies across the state have increased their efforts during the Labor Day weekend, as part of a national anti-DUI effort called “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.”

The "Avoid the Thirteen" program uses state grant money to pay for overtime police patrols specifically looking for signs of drunken drivers, and ends on Monday at midnight.

Between Aug. 19 through midnight Saturday night, 356 individuals were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, by over a dozen law enforcement agencies throughout the county.

This represents an increase from the same 15-day period in 2010, during which 321 arrests were made.

There have been 19 injury DUI traffic collisions resulting in 21 injuries so far. One such collision resulting in one injury occurred last night. In addition, one DUI warrant was issued for failure to appear in court, complete a program, or pay fines, said Smith.

There will continue to be extra patrols in unincorporated San Jose and the city of San Jose, Cupertino, Saratoga, Los Altos Hills, San Jose, Los Gatos, Morgan Hill, Milpitas, Palo Alto, Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, and the San Jose State University campus through Sunday. 

On Monday, there will be extra patrols deployed in the cities of Milpitas, Sunnyvale and Santa Clara, and again at San Jose Sate University.

All regularly scheduled traffic and patrol officers will be focusing their efforts at stopping and arresting DUI drivers during their normal shifts. The California Highway Patrol is deploying all available officers onto freeways and county roads during its “maximum enforcement period,” which began at 6 p.m. on Friday.

The following is a breakdown of arrests made in each city on Saturday:

Campbell: 2

CHP – San Jose: 8*

San Jose Police: 14

Morgan Hill: 0

Milpitas Police: 1

Mountain View Police: 2

Palo Alto Police: 0

Santa Clara Sheriff's Office: 3

Sunnyvale Police: 2

San Jose State: 1

CHP – Gilroy and the Santa Clara, Gilroy, Los Altos, and Los Gatos police departments did not have data as of publication time

The San Jose CHP office, which covers a wide area south of Mountain View and north of Gilroy, did not report the specific locations of the arrests.

The Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department, which covers Cupertino, Saratoga, Los Altos Hills and unincorporated parts of the county, also did not report the location of the arrest on Friday.

The Sheriff's Office urges motorists to call 911 if they witness a motorist driving recklessly or appears impaired.