CHP: Christmas, New Year’s holidays see 57 crash deaths and 872 DUI arrests in California
California Highway Patrol officers throughout the state arrested 510 people on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs during the agency’s New Year’s Day maximum enforcement period.
There also were at least 29 people killed in vehicle crashes in California during the 54-hour CHP enforcement period, which began at 6:01 p.m. Friday and ended at 11:59 p.m. Sunday. During a 78-hour New Year’s Day enforcement a year ago, at least 56 people were killed in California crashes and CHP officers made 709 DUI arrests.
On New Year’s Eve alone, CHP officers throughout the state made 263 arrests for DUI, nearly an 8% increase from the same time last year.
The CHP said at least 28 people were killed in vehicle crashes throughout the state during the 54-hour Christmas Day maximum enforcement period, which occurred from 6:01 p.m. Dec. 24 through 11:59 p.m. Dec. 26. CHP officers arrested 362 people on suspicion of DUI during the Christmas Day enforcement. There were 38 people killed and 573 DUI arrests in California during the 78-hour Christmas enforcement last year.
During this winter holiday season, the CHP partnered with the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration and patrol units in 11 states in a Western States Traffic Safety Coalition for the “Drive High, get a DUI” campaign.
The CHP had all available officers on patrol during the holiday enforcement periods, including officers trained to conduct drug recognition evaluations on suspected impaired drivers. The New Year’s operation focused on identifying and removing impaired drivers from the road, according to a CHP news release.
This story was originally published January 3, 2022 at 6:42 PM.
