According to CHP Public Information Officer Craig Harmon, Friday will be the summer season’s first Driving Under the Influence Checkpoint. The DUI checkpoint will be held in conjunction with the Jackson Police Department on Hwy 49 in downtown Jackson. Last year, 36 people were killed on California roads over the Memorial Day weekend and although Amador County experienced only 4 accidents last year on the holiday weekend, two of which included critical injuries, this year’s statistics can not be compared to last year. Already on the roadways we have had 11 deaths related to 9 vehicle collisions. Officer Harmon states that “We hope this year is an anomaly- however the CHP will have a strong enforcement presence this weekend and all summer long.”

The holiday weekend is a Maximum Enforcement Period (MEP) for the CHP.  This means all available officers will be on duty from 6 p.m. on Friday, May 25 through midnight on Monday, May 28. In the Amador Unit this means 80 percent of the officers currently assigned to the county will be on duty.  Harmon’s states that because DUI related accidents and DUI related arrests are up significantly this year in the county all local law enforcement agencies will be on the look out for any signs of an impaired driver on the roadways, and the waterways as well. Amador County Under-Sheriff James Wegner states that the sheriff’s boat patrols will be on maximum enforcement on Amador County lakes as well. During last year’s Memorial Day MEP, drunken driving arrests by CHP officers statewide were up 6.5 percent from the same weekend in 2005. 

Statewide, the CHP arrested 1,639 drivers for DUI and many of these arrests were based on tips from other citizens. When calling to report someone suspected of driving under the influence, try to provide as much of the following information as possible:  description of the vehicle, its location and direction of travel. Harmon states that these types of driver and citizens tips are invaluable in keeping Amador county roadways safe and the CHP, the Amador county Sheriff’s department and the local Police Departments all take these citizen reports seriously.  “The summer driving season is always busy on Amador county roadways. We live in a beautiful place and that means many visitors will soon be arriving in the county for sight seeing and other recreational activities. More vehicles on Amador County roads statistically will increase the amount of traffic collisions on the roads- combine this with the increases in DUI numbers and a dangerous situation can develop.” Harmon emphasized that you can increase your chances of keeping yourself and your family safe by Buckling up, watching your speed and never drinking and driving,”