Memorial Day Weekend DUI Crackdown Yields 133 Arrests, No Fatalities

The "Avoid the 13" focus on drunken driving this Memorial Day weekend ended with arrests and alcohol-related crashes both down from 2010, the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department reported Tuesday.

In total, there were 133 arrests, five alcohol-related crashes with three injuries, and no fatalities at the end of the four-day campaign that began Friday.

The Santa Clara County Sheriff's which provides contract service to Cupertino, Los Altos Hills and Saratoga, as well as to unincorpated areas of the county, had two arrests on Monday and a total of eight for the weekend.

Fifteen law enforcement agencies participate in the "Avoid the 13" program, which means they focus enforcement around holidays where drinking and driving have been a problem.

The reduction of crashes attributed to driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, commonly called "DUI," and lack of fatalities is the main point of the focused enforcement, said Sgt. Rick Sung of the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department. In 2010, there were 146 arrests, six crashes of which five resulted in injuries, and no fatalities. The five crashes with three injuries in 2011 marks an improvement, he noted.

Here is the breakdown of arrests compiled by the Santa Clara County Sheriff's Department among the 15 participating agencies for the four-day period:

Campbell Police - 9 arrests
CHP Hollister-Gilroy -11 arrests
CHP - San Jose - 32 arrests
Los Altos Police - 2 arrest
Los Gatos Police - 1 arrest
Milpitas Police - 4 arrests
Morgan Hill Police - 5 arrests
Mountain View Police - 5 arrests
San Jose Police - 43 arrests
Santa Clara Police - 4 arrest
Santa Clara County Sheriff - 8 arrests (including 1 made early Monday)
Sunnyvale Public Safety - 9 arrests

No further information was available on the CHP arrest locations, nor the Sheriff's Department arrests, which would also encompass the contract cities of Cupertino, Los Altos Hills and Saratoga.

On the final day of the holiday weekend, Sung encouraged the public to call 911 on suspected drunk drivers to prevent potential crashes, injuries and fatalities.