Local authorities beefing up patrols, conducting DUI checkpoints for Labor Day weekend

As people flock to the beaches this holiday weekend — which coincides with the start of Pedestrian Safety Month — local police agencies are beefing up their patrols and preparing checkpoints to catch drivers who are under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

In Newport Beach, police conducted a DUI checkpoint on Aug. 18 and reported Friday that seven of the 602 vehicles that passed through were cited by motorcycle officers for a variety of vehicle code-related charges.

Two individuals were arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. The drivers of 162 of those 602 cars were contacted, assessed and provided education on driving under the influence.

Sgt. Corey Wolik, assigned to Newport Beach Police Department’s traffic division, said it’s difficult to ascertain how often officers are called for DUIs but noted they happen all over the city.

“We get called on a regular basis as people report drivers who they believe may be under the influence based on their driving,” said Wolik. “Sometimes it is just distracted driving, due to either cellphone use [or] inattention. It could be that someone is tired or distracted by others in the vehicle.

“We take driving under the influence very seriously here in Newport Beach and we work very hard to get impaired drivers off the street,” Wolik continued. “When we do checkpoints ... we try to cover the entire city so that people don’t know where or when it’s coming.”

Wolik said that from January through the end of July 2021 there were 96 DUI-related collisions reported in Newport Beach. During that same period this year, 98 such collisions were recorded.

Wolik confirmed there would be additional patrols out this weekend to look for drivers suspected of driving drunk or under the influence of drugs.

The same is true in the neighboring cities of Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, Fountain Valley and Laguna Beach, according to their respective police departments.

Costa Mesa police said checkpoints are typically determined by data showing incidents of impaired driving-related crashes.

Authorities say the point of checkpoints is not to cite or arrest but to educate.

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