The Antelope Valley Times

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DUI checkpoints planned in Palmdale, Lancaster

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PALMDALE – The Palmdale Sheriff’s Station will be conducting a DUI/Driver’s License Checkpoint on Friday, May 16, at an undisclosed location within the city limits, between the hours of 6 p.m. and 2 a.m.

Deputies will be contacting drivers passing through the checkpoint for signs of alcohol and/or drug impairment. Deputies will also check drivers for proper licensing and will strive to delay motorists only momentarily. When possible, specially trained officers will be available to evaluate those suspected of drug-impaired driving. Drivers caught driving impaired can expect jail, license suspension, and insurance increases, as well as fines, fees, DUI classes, and other expenses that can exceed $10,000.

Lancaster DUI checkpoint May 23

The Sheriff Department’s Lancaster Station will be conducting a DUI/Driver’s License Checkpoint at an undisclosed location in Lancaster on Friday, May 23, from 6 p.m. to 2 a.m.

In 2011, nearly 10,000 people were killed nationally in motor vehicle traffic crashes that involved at least one driver or motorcycle rider with a blood alcohol concentration of .08% or higher. In California, this deadly crime led to 774 deaths because someone failed to designate a sober driver. “Over the course of the past three years, DUI collisions have claimed 49 lives and resulted in 893 injury crashes harming 1,113 of our friends and neighbors,” said Sgt. Joseph Jakl of the Risk Management Bureau.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), checkpoints have provided the most effective documented results of any of the DUI enforcement strategies, while also yielding considerable cost savings of $6 for every $1 spent. Based on collision statistics and frequency of DUI arrests, DUI Checkpoints are placed in locations that have the greatest opportunity for achieving drunk and drugged driving deterrence. Locations are chosen with safety considerations for the officers and the public.

Funding for these operations is provided to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

 

 

Filed Under: Crime/ Safety

11 comments for "DUI checkpoints planned in Palmdale, Lancaster"

  2. Funny thing the location is always undisclosed.

    As specified by the U.S. Supreme Court, DUI checkpoints are designed to protect and deter drivers from operating a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol. To make sure officers don’t use checkpoints simply to apprehend offenders, federal DUI guidelines require law enforcement to announce the date and location of any planned roadblock to the public. As a result, you can often find out the date and location of roadblocks scheduled in your area, which means you can stay away from them.

    But you never can find the location on the good old AV Times.

    I guess it’s still better than reading about Sunshine, Lolly pops and everything that’s good in the AV Press.

  3. Funny wording, isn’t it? “Funded by a grant from COTS and NHTSA”. Wait a minute, those are government organizations. So, the government is giving a “grant” to another government agency, to “fund” an extraneous Sheriff operation. So…basically, despite their clever wording, its still coming out of the taxpayer pocket. So it isn’t a “grant”.

    Its a budgeted item. Oh wait, the budgets they pass are jokes to begin with.

    http://oathkeepers.org/oath/

    • Oh, Eric. It will cost about a trillion dollars to care for the veterans from the Iraq and Afghanistan wars over their lifetimes.

      Are you at all concerned about that? That’s taxpayer money and the vets certainly deserve it but on whose watch did 9/11 occur and who went to a war on falsehoods about WMDs while cutting taxes on the rich? And, who has had to work at cleaning up those messes.

      Yeah, there is a difference in who runs things. Look at the difference between the 2 cities in the AV. One has been plugging along pretty well despite recessions while the other has lowered bond ratings and is actually a mess while its ‘leaders’ make the big $$$$s and take good care of each other.

      • Am I concerned about how much it’ll cost to care for veterans? As a veteran who served in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and under both President Bush & President Obama, yes, I am.

        • @Eric
          So, which party do you think will have the best policies in order to fund that trillion dollar bill over many decades or 3rd party candidate?

          A. The party that wants to cut taxes constantly, especially on the top 1%.

          B. The party that wants to increase the taxes on those folks rather than cut social services for the poor and increase taxes on the lower and middle class?

          C. None of the above.

          Now, do ya see a difference? I could ask you to choose on just about any issue as the 2 major parties disagree on everything.

    • Money from a Federal government agency, to a State government agency, then to a local government agency is called a grant.
      Check it.

      • And what is it called when money is taken from you, unwillingly, by threat of force and imprisonment. If I were to do it, it would be called extortion. If the government does it, it is called “taxing”.

  4. It’s simple.

    Don’t drink and drive.
    Don’t do drugs and drive.
    Keep a valid drivers license on your person when driving.
    Keep a valid registration in your vehicle at all times.
    Keep proof of insurance in your vehicle at all times.

    If you can’t do these simple things then you should not be driving.
    Stop complaining about DUI checkpoints and your rights. Driving is a privilege, not a right.