Anyone finding the need to drive through Anaheim or Irvine tonight might want to be extra cautious because those cities’ respective police departments will be setting up DUI checkpoints there.
The Anaheim checkpoint will be on Brookhurst Street at
Broadway between the hours of 8 p.m. and 3 a.m. The Irvine checkpoint will be in the area of Culver Drive and Alton Parkway and will be up between 8 p.m. and 2 a.m.
“DUI Checkpoints are placed in locations based on collision statistics and frequency of DUI arrests, affording the greatest opportunity for achieving drunk and drugged driving deterrence,” states a Nov. 21 news release from the Anaheim PD. “Locations are chosen with safety considerations for the officers and the public.”
The Irvine PD says their checkpoint will be clearly marked and vehicles will be selected for further screening on a “pre-set basis to ensure objectivity.” Those who are selected will be “greeted and given information about the dangers of driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol.” From there, “trained officers will direct suspected impaired drivers to a secondary area for further evaluation,” according to the news release.
Oh, and in case you were wondering, police departments like Anaheim and Irvine want the media to publicize the times and locations of their DUI checkpoints. “IPD publicizes these highly visible sobriety checkpoints to deter impaired drivers, encourage the use of sober designated drivers and rideshare services, and bring increased awareness to the consequences of impaired driving,” states the Irvine PD news release.
Funding for the checkpoints is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety.
Anthony Pignataro has been a journalist since 1996. He spent a dozen years as Editor of MauiTime, the last alt weekly in Hawaii. He also wrote three trashy novels about Maui, which were published by Event Horizon Press. But he got his start at OC Weekly, and returned to the paper in 2019 as a Staff Writer.