DUI checkpoints lead to 31 arrests

By Sandra Dibble, UNION-TRIBUNE
Sunday, April 17, 2011 at 12:56 p.m.

San Diego Sheriff’s deputies and San Diego police arrested 31 drivers and impounded 70 vehicles at sobriety checkpoints in Vista and Pacific Beach Saturday night and Sunday morning.

A total of 1037 drivers passed through the Vista checkpoint, operated between 8 p.m. Saturday and 2 a.m. Sunday on Civic Center Drive near Eucalyptus Avenue. Of those, seven were arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

The Sheriff’s deputies issued 47 citations for violations that ranged from driving without a license, driving with a suspended license and possession of marijuana in a vehicle. During the operation, they seized 41 vehicles whose drivers were unlicensed, had their permits suspended, or were placed under arrest.

At the Pacific Beach checkpoint, on Grand Avenue near Culver Street, San Diego police officers screened 725 vehicles, and arrested 25 drivers for driving under the influence. One driver was arrested for felony possession of a controlled substance, and another was arrested for being drunk in public. A total of 29 vehicles were impounded.