For further information, contact:
For further information, contact:
Jan Ford, Public Information
Avoid the 8-Law Enforcement in San Francisco
(650) 322-9121
Cell: (650) 269-2148

NEARLY 1,000 DUI ARRESTS IN SAN FRANCISCO BAY AREA IN FIRST WEEK OF IMPAIRED-DRIVING CRACKDOWN

  Total is off by 17%

  Nearly one thousand DUI suspects have been arrested in the nine-county Bay Area in the first week of the 17-day winter crackdown on impaired drivers that covers 125 law enforcement jurisdictions.

Arrests have dropped by 17 percent across the region, standing at 994 compared with 1,196 at the same time in the campaign last year. Numbers cover up to midnight Christmas Eve.

“The overall drop in arrests is good news. People are getting the message that drinking and driving is just not worth it,” said Lt. Mike Peretti of the Livermore Police Dept., coordinator of Avoid the 21 in Alameda County.

The enforcement blitz began Friday, Dec. 18, and continues until Jan. 3. Last year’s effort started on Dec. 12, lasting for 21 days.

Police officers, California Highway Patrol officers and deputy sheriffs in Alameda County have made the largest number of arrests in the region with 352. They are followed by Santa Clara County at 278 and Contra Costa County at 104.

Arrests have doubled in Napa County, are up by 19 percent in San Francisco, by 15 percent in Sonoma County and higher by 10 percent in Santa Clara County. Marin County did not report last year.

They are off by about a third in Alameda, Contra Costa and San Mateo counties. They are down by 55 percent in Solano County.

The CHP continues its maximum enforcement through Sunday night. Extra DUI patrols are in effect in most cities.

The campaigns are funded by the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

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