The Utah Highway Patrol had 22 officers out on the weekend and made 24 DUI arrests. They made and exceeded their quota. The DUI Blitz is the modern DUI check point. Check points are generally unconstitutional unless rigorous guidelines are followed. The police don’t do checkpoints very often anymore. I wonder why? Perhaps there is an easier way to make their quota. Here’s the story.
A Utah Highway Patrol drunken driving blitz netted 24 DUI arrests in Salt Lake County over the weekend. Twenty-two state troopers patrolled the roads in Salt Lake County from 9 p.m. Friday to 2 a.m. Saturday, said UHP Sgt. Blaine Robbins. The blitz was to promote safety on the roads.
Here’s another story. They almost seem happy about the sad issue that people are still drinking and driving when there is all this publicity about DUI enforcement. Well, pat yourselves on the back for now. I mean the public will only here this number of arrests. They won’t hear about the innocent people you may have arrested.
24 impaired drivers arrested in 5 hours
Published: Monday, May 26, 2008 12:06 a.m. MDT
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A DUI enforcement blitz conducted Friday night by the Utah Highway Patrol netted 24 impaired drivers in a five-hour period.UHP Sgt. Blaine Robbins said Sunday that 22 state troopers were assigned to locations throughout Salt Lake County. He noted the number of arrests, which occurred between the hours of 9 p.m. Friday and 2 a.m. Saturday, is exceptional for the size of the task force.
"That’s a very, very good enforcement day," Robbins said. "We’re always out enforcing, but on a big weekend like this, with the number of troopers involved … more than one arrest per trooper is outstanding."
Robbins said that dedicated UHP DUI enforcers are out on a regular basis and typically make two to three arrests per shift."Our DUI Squad that’s out every weekend … our ‘graveyard cars’ … do very well," Robbins said.
The high number of arrests occurred in spite of UHP publicity efforts last week that warned weekend holiday travelers of heightened enforcement efforts by the department.
Finally, KSL ran their story. The story revolves around the arrests and an accident. The accident is presumed without more information that it involves a drunk driver. This of course will justify the cause. Perhaps this accident happened because the driver just made a poor decision and a driving mistake in trying to pass a diesel.
Troopers make 24 DUI arrests in one night
May 25th, 2008 @ 5:34pmTonya Papanikolas reporting
A man who may have been drinking died in a car crash. The news comes the morning after Utah Highway Patrol (UHP) troopers remove more than two dozen drunk drivers from the streets.
Sgt. Blaine Robbins, with the UHP, said, "We had our fair share of DUIs. I believe there were 24 DUIs apprehended, 22 troopers were out." And that was just Friday night alone, meaning the number could grow.
Despite their efforts to stop people from driving drunk, there was at least one fatality already this weekend. Yesterday morning, troopers say a Ford Escort tried to pass a semi truck on I-80 in Echo Canyon. The car hit a median, overcorrected and ended up beneath the wheels of a semi.
"The semi truck rolled over and ended up on top of that vehicle, killing the passenger in that vehicle," Sgt. Robbins said.
That accident is under investigation, but troopers say they believe the driver of the car may have been drinking. They say, no matter how many times they try to warn people of the dangers, it’s something they see time and again. "It seems to be a message that people still have a hard time with, is if you’re going to go out and have fun, which is great, we want you to be able to do that, but just drink responsibly and make sure you have a designated driver to get you home," Sgt. Robbins said.
Troopers will be out through Monday, looking for people who still choose to drink and drive. They’ll also be watching to see if you’re buckled up when they pull you over. If you’re not, it’ll cost you $45.
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