Drive sober or get pulled over, officers warn

As part of their Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign, sheriff’s deputies and police officers throughout San Diego County will be on the lookout for drunken drivers Labor Day weekend.

The campaign began last month and will end Monday.

“Research has shown that high-visibility enforcement, like the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign, reduces alcohol-impaired driving fatalities by as much as 20 percent,” San Diego Police Officer Mark McCullough said.

Between the campaign’s start Aug. 17 and Sunday, Aug. 26, 417 suspected drunken drivers were arrested in San Diego County, according to the sheriff’s department.

“By joining this nationwide effort, we will make the county’s roadways safer for everyone throughout the Labor Day period,” Sheriff Bill Gore said. “If you’ve had too much to drink, don’t even think about getting behind the wheel. Driving impaired is simply not worth the risk. Remember, we will be out in force and we will be watching, so drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.”

San Diego police set checkpoints for 9 p.m. Friday and Saturday and another to begin at 4 p.m. Monday, McCullough said. The locations were not disclosed.

San Diego County’s Avoid the 14 task force, named for the number of area law enforcement agencies involved, will conduct checkpoints and roving patrols through Monday, McCullough said.

Sheriff’s deputies, California Highway Patrol officers and other law enforcement agencies will conduct extra patrols and checkpoints in Poway, Encinitas, and Santee Friday night, in Imperial Beach Saturday, and in Santee Sunday, according to sheriff’s Lt. David Gilmore.

Oceanside police will conduct a DUI checkpoint between 8 p.m. Friday and 3 a.m. Saturday as part of its DUI Enforcement and Awareness Program.