Calif. police use grant to fund DUI checkpoint

By Tracy Manzer
The Press - Telegram

LONG BEACH, Calif. — Holiday revelers should make sure they have their designated drivers at the ready Friday because the Long Beach Police Department will be out in force looking for drunk drivers.

The impaired driver checkpoint will screen for drivers under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and those driving unlicensed, from 6 p.m. Friday to 2 a.m. Saturday in the South Division area, police said.

"Over the past three years, DUI collisions have claimed 13 lives and resulted in 274 injury crashes in Long Beach, harming 388 of our friends and neighbors," said LBPD Sgt. Aaron Alu.

The checkpoint, which is funded by a national and state grant, is designed to get dangerous drivers off local roads while educating the public and to reduce the numbers of local residents hurt and killed, Alu said.

Drivers who are caught operating a vehicle under the influence face arrest, jail time, license suspension, insurance increases, DUI classes and other expenses that can exceed $10,000, police warned.

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