Police begin crackdown on impaired drivers, boaters

Sobriety and driver’s license checkpoints, Coast Guard patrols to find people boating under the influence, in-city DUI patrols, maximum freeway saturation by the California Highway Patrol and the emphasis on DUI enforcement with officers on regular

beats are on the enforcement calendar as Ventura County police begin a new crackdown on drinking and drugged drivers.

The 18-day effort, named “Avoid the 14,” began shortly after midnight on Fri., Dec. 15 and will end at midnight on New

Year’s Day, according to senior officer Humberto Jimenez of the Oxnard Police Department. It involves all 14 law enforcement agencies in Ventura County.

“You can avoid arrest, fines, jail, and the pain and heartache DUI always causes by operating your motor vehicle or boat stone-cold sober every single time,” Jimenez said. “‘Avoid the 14’ will arrest you on dry land or in the water.”

Three of the four checkpoints are cooperative and will be staffed by officers from several jurisdictions. The fourth is an effort by police in Simi Valley. All will announce their locations two hours ahead. Two are set for opening night, Dec. 15—one in Simi Valley and one in Fillmore. Simi Valley’s checkpoint begins at 8 p.m. and ends at 2 a.m.

The Fillmore event will be staffed by deputies from the Ventura County Sheriff’s Department and officers from Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Santa Paula, the Ventura County Community College District and California State University at Channel Islands. It starts at 8 p.m. and continues until 2 a.m.

The following Saturday, Dec. 23, there will be a checkpoint in Moorpark from 6 p.m. to midnight. Staffing the event will be officers from the CHP, the Coast Guard, Simi Valley, the college district and Oxnard, along with the sheriff’s deputies.

Oak View is the setting for the last checkpoint, Sat., Dec. 30 from 8:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. CHP officers and others from the Coast Guard, sheriff ’s office, Port Hueneme, Santa Paula, the college district, Simi Valley and Oxnard will interview, test and arrest DUI suspects.

The CHP will focus on DUI enforcement throughout the holiday period, with 80 percent of available officers on the road on Christmas and New Year’s weekends, according to Lt. Casey Cronin.

The California Office of Traffic Safety funds all 35 of the state’s “Avoid” campaigns through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The campaign movement is expanding rapidly with a 14-county gain within the last year, said Wayne Ziese, OTS Avoid coordinator. “Avoid the 14” is among the newest in the state. It joins “Avoid the 12” in neighboring Santa Barbara County in presenting a solid wall of police officers.