Police Revive Weekend Checkpoint Program

To discourage teenagers from hanging out downtown and motorists from letting car registration and routine maintenance lapse, the Police Department has revived the weekend checkpoint program initiated last summer.

The first three-hour checkpoint this year, the weekend of March 30, resulted in a record 233 citations, 10 arrests--two of them for drunk driving--and 11 vehicles impounded.

Police Lt. Dan Johnson said most of the citations were for equipment violations such as nonworking taillights or headlights. Vehicles were impounded from motorists driving on suspended licenses or with expired registrations.

Downtown has long been a magnet for crowds of teens, and that has tended to discourage families from frequenting the area, city officials said. Spring break, Johnson said, has drawn thousands of young people to this seaside town in the last few weeks.

The purpose of the checkpoints, Johnson said, is not to keep teens away but to discourage them from loitering, to ensure that they do not break laws and to maintain public safety.

“The Police Department will be down there in force to take the steps necessary to keep the peace,” he said.

So far, Johnson said, there have not been problems or major crimes, despite the large crowds. Officials estimated that about 81,000 people visited the beach last weekend alone.