7 Arrested On Saturation Saturday In Petaluma

PETALUMA, CA — The Petaluma Police Department participated in the Mothers Against Drunk Driving Saturation Saturday program — a high-visibility traffic safety enforcement operation to catch suspected drunk drivers and deter others from driving drunk.

The nationwide event takes place annually the Saturday prior to Labor Day Weekend and coincides with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s "Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over" campaign, which runs Aug. 14-Sept. 2. The first Saturation Saturday was held in 2016 in Missouri. By 2018, Illinois and New York joined the program. The success of the event led MADD in 2019 to aim for simultaneous Saturation Saturday enforcement operations across the country.

The message from MADD is that if you choose to drive impaired, you will get caught.

On Saturation Saturday in Petaluma, six additional officers were deployed from 4 p.m. to 3 a.m. Between the operation and regular patrol efforts, the Petaluma Police Department arrested four suspected DUI drivers. Another person was arrested on an outstanding warrant and two people were cited for driving unlicensed/suspended.

Funding for the saturation patrol was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.