Police Plan Monthlong Sobriety Checkpoint
Police in this city will kick off a holiday season crackdown on drunk drivers by setting up a monthlong sobriety checkpoint tonight at Brookhurst Street and Edinger Avenue.
The checkpoint from 9 p.m. to 2 a.m. is part of “Deuce Watch,” a Fountain Valley Police program that shifts extra officers to night patrols through the holiday season to search for impaired drivers, according to Sgt. Kevin McKeown.
Deuce is a common police nickname for arrests for DUI, or driving under the influence.
While national trends show a decrease in arrests for driving under the influence, the city has seen a surge in drunk-driving collisions in the past year, McKeown said.
Last month officers made 27 DUI arrests, almost doubling the number from October, he said.
“It’s hard to say why that happens, if we knew what it was we would be out there attacking it,” McKeown said, adding that the increase in arrests might be attributed to heightened officer awareness of the problem.
The extra night patrols will last through Jan. 1, he said.
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