Crime & Safety
No DUI Arrests, But Registration Issues Common at Weekend Checkpoint
Berlin police said Tuesday that a weekend checkpoint helped keep DUI drivers off the road – but the number of unregistered motor vehicles are continuing to trend upward.
A sobriety checkpoint over the weekend showed that motorists are making smart decisions and avoiding going behind the wheel after consuming alcohol, but the number of unregistered motorists is trending upward, Berlin police said.
The Berlin Police Department conducted a six-hour checkpoint Saturday evening on the Berlin Turnpike at the intersection with Middletown Road. The effort netted no driving under the influence arrests but lead to nine vehicles being towed from the scene, all due to registration issues, Deputy Chief Joseph Klett said.
“A total of 1182 vehicles were directed through the checkpoint during the detail where vehicles were briefly detained and interviewed by officers,” Klett said. “Of the vehicles passing through the checkpoint, 10 motorists were flagged by the contact officers for DUI testing or other investigative interviews.”
There were no DUIs discovered, he said – a good sign that previous checkpoints and public safety efforts have led drivers to think twice about drinking and driving – but nine motorists were cited with operating an unregistered motor vehicle and two others for operating a motor vehicle under suspension.
No added tools were used or registration run prior to the stops, police said.
Across the region, police have seen an increase in the number of people driving without proper registration. Southington police have reported spikes in the trend as high as 60 or more drivers in a week, while Meriden police also reported increases.
The DUI enforcement over the weekend was funded through a grant from the Connecticut Department of Transportation's Highway Safety Division to support increased DUI detection and enforcement efforts, Klett said.
The program ran from Thanksgiving 2012 through Labor Day 2013 and the grant provides 75 percent reimbursement of the overtime costs related to these efforts.
The grant helps to provide funding to staff additional DUI patrols as well as roadside sobriety checkpoints. Roadside sobriety checkpoints have been shown to be the most effective method to detect and apprehend under the influence drivers, Berlin police said.
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