Drunk Drivers Are Facing Holiday Crackdown in O.C.

By JASON KANDEL

Dec. 18, 1998 12 AM PT

SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

She spent the morning hanging wallpaper in her new Chino Hills home. That afternoon, Riedel Post lay in critical condition after being hit by a drunk driver who had passed out behind the wheel.

Post has physically recovered in the more than 10 years since the crash, but her life remains forever changed: As head of the Orange County chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, she is dedicated to getting drunk drivers off the street, a job that takes on greater significance during the holiday season, when revelers are more likely to drink and drive.

Post will play a key role today as part of a North County regional task force cracking down on drunk drivers with a zero-tolerance approach.

“We’re going to go out and stand on the lines with the officers and encourage them to stop drunk drivers,” she said.

This is the third year that police officers from Brea, Buena Park, Fullerton, La Habra and Placentia will aim for “saturation enforcement,” now through the end of the year.

The goal is to continue a welcome trend showing a steady decline in drunk-driving arrests and fatalities in Orange County.

“If you’re over the legal limit, you’re going to jail,” said Fullerton Police Sgt. Bob Terrio. “That’s all there is to it.”

In Orange County last year, 49 people died in alcohol-related collisions, a 26% decrease from 1996, when 66 people were killed. Drunk-driving injuries have fallen in that time from 2,458 to 2,149, according to MADD. There were about 14,856 drunk-driving arrests last year.

Extra patrol units and tow trucks will be on hand this year. Vehicles will be impounded if the drivers are found to be driving without licenses or if they have been suspended. Officers will be poised to track down drivers who refuse to stop at checkpoints.

The Orange County chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving will also distribute safe driving brochures to everyone stopped by police.

Crackdowns will begin today and go through the end of the year. Enforcement efforts will be concentrated from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m., times when drunk drivers are most likely to be on the road.

MADD’s Post can vividly recall the head-on collision on Carbon Canyon Road that snapped her right ankle, fractured her wrist and slammed her head against the driver’s side window. Post hopes the checkpoints will catch drunk drivers and discourage others from drinking and driving.

Her work also helps put the crash behind her.

“It’s far less painful for me to think about that,” she said, “when I am proactive in trying to change other offenders’ minds about drinking and driving.”

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Fewer Casualties

Alcohol-related accidents, deaths and injuries fell to five-year lows in Orange County in 1997, the most recent year for which information is available. And the frequency of drinking-related collisions in 1997 was lower in Orange County than in any of the surrounding counties.

Deaths

1993: 76

1994: 55

1995: 53

1996: 66

1997: 49

Injuries

1993: 3,061

1994: 2,855

1995: 2,622

1996: 2,458

1997: 2,149