Posts Tagged ‘Checkpoints’

Colorado DUI enforcement for New Year’s Eve

Friday, December 31st, 2010

The Colorado State Patrol and 71 other law enforcement agencies across the state have cemented plans to increase DUI enforcement over the New Year’s weekend, but would-be partiers can plan ahead as well by making arrangements for designated drivers or by ringing in 2011 at local  restaurants and bars that provide patrons with free $10 cab vouchers.

“You can still have a good time with friends and family, but take responsibility for yourself to be safe and line up a sober ride if you’re celebrating with alcohol,” advises James Wolfinbarger, chief of the Colorado State Patrol.  “If you don’t plan ahead, that’s when bad situations arise and you can end up behind bars and worse.”

The Colorado Department of Transportation has partnered with MillerCoors to encourage responsible decisions and provide useful tools for celebrants to get home safely. The beer company is offering free taxi vouchers at participating restaurants and bars.  Cab information and locations where people can get the free vouchers can be found at www.planaheadcolorado.com.

One thing celebrants can count on for sure this coming weekend is that police officers will be out in force looking for people who didn’t plan ahead and who decided to risk it all by drinking and driving. Following is a list of Colorado law enforcement agencies and their enforcement plans for the New Year’s weekend.

Saturation Patrols:

Adams County Sheriff’s Office, December 30 – January 3

Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office, December 30 – January 3

Castle Rock Police Department, December 30 – January 3

Colorado Springs Police Department, December 30 – January 3

CSP/Castle Rock, December 30 – January 2

CSP/Adams County, December 30 – January 2

El Paso County Sheriff’s Office, December 30 – January 1

Fort Collins Police Department, December 30 – January 2

Greenwood Village Police Department, December 30 – January 1

Lakewood Police Department, December 30 – January 3

Larimer County Sheriff’s Office, December 30 – January 2

Increased Patrols:

Auraria Campus Police Department, December 30 – January 3

Aurora Police Department, December 30 – January 4

Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, December 30 – January 1

Boulder Police Department, December 30 – January 1

Brighton Police Department, December 30 – January 3

CSP/Colorado Springs, December 30 – January 3

CSP/Broomfield, December 30 – January 3

Denver Police Department, December 30 – January 3

Edgewater Police Department, December 30 – January 3

Longmont Police Department, December 30 – January 3

Northglenn Police Department, December 30 – January 3

Wheat Ridge Police Department, December 30 – January 1

New Years Eve, 2010 DUI Checkpoints in Colorado

Monday, December 28th, 2009

If you are out driving in Colorado during the season, expect to be contacted by a police officer working DUI patrol. During the holiday season, DUI enforcement and DUI checkpoints in Colorado are intensified. The last thing someone wants to ring in the New Year with is a DUI arrest, but such arrests in Colorado during New Years Eve increase every year. New Years Eve, 2010 is not expected to be any different.

Unfortunately, there will be hundreds of drunk drivers on the roads to bring in 2010. Last year, police in Colorado made 569 DUI arrests in a week span between December 30, 2008 and January 5, 2009, according to CDOT’s website. This number was noticeably larger than the DUI arrest statistics for 2008. DUI enforcement in Colorado for January 1, 2010 will be just as intense, if not more so.

The increase in DUI enforcement in Colorado is based largely on tragic fatalities and editorials in the local media and on television in 2009. The increased DUI enforcement includes additional officers patrolling traffic, and an increase of roadside DUI checkpoints at various locations around the state.

The best advice anyone can adhere to for a safe New Year’s Eve is to make alternate arrangements for transportation, and to avoid putting oneself in a dubious situation, recommends Denver DUI attorney Jay Tiftickjian. “Once alcohol is in your system, your decision making ability is impaired. Therefore, it is always best to make your transportation arrangements prior to going out for the night.”