DUI/Driver License Checkpoint Coming Up In Santa Monica

SANTA MONICA, CA — The Santa Monica Police Department will be conducting a DUI/Driver's License Checkpoint on Friday, September 13 at an undisclosed location within the city limits between 7 p.m. and 3 a.m.

SMPD supports the effort from the Office of Traffic Safety that aims to educate all drivers that "DUI Doesn’t Just Mean Booze."

"If you take prescription drugs, particularly those with a driving or operating machinery warning on the label, you might be impaired enough to get a DUI. Marijuana can also be impairing, especially in combination with alcohol or other drugs, and can result in a DUI," police said.

Over the past three years, SMPD officers have investigated 250 DUI collisions and made 276 DUI-related arrests. Since 2016, the Santa Monica Police Department has conducted 15 DUI/Driver's License checkpoints, have screened 14,669 vehicles and contacted 4,996 drivers during these type of operations. Forty one arrests have been made for operating a vehicle without a valid driver’s license.

Drivers caught driving impaired can expect the impact of a DUI arrest to include jail time, fines, fees, DUI classes, license suspensions and other expenses that can exceed $10,000, the SMPD press release said.

Funding for this checkpoint is provided to SMPD by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, reminding everyone to report drunk drivers by calling 911.