2 DUI Suspects Nabbed In Overnight Malibu Checkpoint
Written by 991KBU on September 12, 2020
The first drunken driving checkpoint in Malibu since the COVID lockdowns of last spring nabbed two DUI suspects Friday night.
The Los Angeles County sheriff’s department used a state grant to pay for the checkpoint, which was announced in advance and placed at Pacific Coast Highway at Webb Way.
In past years, deputies have said that is the safest and preferred location for a checkpoint, given the width of the road and adjacent parking lots for parking.
The checkpoint was from 7 p.m. Friday to 3 a.m. today, Saturday.
As businesses continue to reopen, including bars and restaurants, impaired driving remains a top traffic safety concern.
Deputies say they are seeing more inebriated drivers as bars and restaurants reopen, and parties resume despite the COVID rules against them,
Fourteen drivers were cited for operating a vehicle unlicensed or with a suspended or revoked license. Two vehicles were towed to impound yards, and 12 vehicles were released to other licensed drivers.
Two other drivers were cited for possession of an open container of alcoholic beverage and/or marijuana, while operating a vehicle.
The sheriff’s office said checkpoint locations are based on a history of crashes and DUI arrests. The primary purpose of checkpoints is not to make arrests, but to promote public safety by deterring drivers from driving impaired.
Fourteen drivers were cited for operating a vehicle unlicensed or with a suspended or revoked license. Two vehicles were towed to impound yards, and 12 vehicles were released to other licensed drivers.
Two other drivers were cited for possession of an open container of alcoholic beverage and/or marijuana, while operating a vehicle.
The sheriff’s office said checkpoint locations are based on a history of crashes and DUI arrests. The primary purpose of checkpoints is not to make arrests, but to promote public safety by deterring drivers from driving impaired.
For decades, the federal and state governments have funded checkpoints to deter drunk driving, and the U S Supreme Court has specifically ruled that drivers’ constitutional rights are not offended.
But the DUI checkpoint at the Civic Center comes at a time that racing, loud vehicles and obnoxious driving is more and more prevalent, elsewhere in Malibu and the adjacent canyons.
