Police in Fullerton, CA are using state grants to help fight against drunk driving. So far, in 2013, there have been 121 DUI arrests in Fullerton, and since 2009 there have been 14 motor-vehicle deaths, seven of those were alcohol related. The Police have admitted the city has a bar problem, and now they’re doing something to fight back against it.
The department will be using two grants, one for $146,222, the other for $50,000, to reduce the number of drunk driving incidents. The grants have allowed the department to implement 35 saturation patrols, where a pair of officers patrols the popular downtown destination for suspected drunk drivers. They have also staged one sobriety checkpoint, and four more are planned throughout the year.
They are also running undercover operations at court houses, where officers are following drivers with suspended licenses to the parking lot. Most of the drivers have had alternate transportation, but some unlucky residents have gotten into their cars and driven away, only to get pulled over and cited for driving without a license.
Drunk driving has been a problem in Fullerton, with the number of bars (47), and the close proximity of two college campuses. The grants will help fund different operations to help prevent drunk driving, as well as pay for overtime for the police officers.
