By Rylie Friesen—
The Citrus Heights Police Department has been awarded a $142,000 grant through the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) for funding DUI checkpoints, saturation patrols, recognition training, and safety enforcement in the city.
“This grant will help foster our continued efforts of educating the public, promoting a safe environment for our community, and reducing the number of persons killed and injured in crashes involving alcohol, drugs, and other primary collision factors (such as distracted driving),” Police Chief Ron Lawrence and members of his executive team said in an Oct. 24 staff report to the City Council.
The report said funding will provide for operational costs and supplies to conduct DUI checkpoints, as well as patrols and enforcement activities. The grant is known as a Selective Traffic Enforcement Program grant, with funds awarded annual through the state’s traffic safety office.
Data previously provided by police shows a total of 47 DUI-related collisions and 188 DUI arrests have occurred in Citrus Heights, through July 31, representing an increase of more than 50% in arrests compared to the same period last year.
Related: DUI arrests have increased over 50% in Citrus Heights this year. Here’s why.
A portion of the grant funds will be used to send officers into drug recognition training. The report said six police officers will go to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s Standardized Field Sobriety Testing training and four officers will be sent to an Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement training. Two officers will also be sent to a Drug Recognition Expert training, and another officer will be sent to a Drug Recognition Expert instructor training.
City Council members voted to formally accept the grant funds last week, approving a resolution affirming that “community safety and reduction of accidents, injuries, and deaths are a City Council priority.”
See results from CHPD’s latest DUI checkpoint operation in The Sentinel’s Oct. 27th news briefs: Citrus Heights News Briefs: DUI checkpoint results, turn lanes, traffic safety
The Citrus Heights Police Department has been awarded a $142,000 grant through the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) for funding DUI checkpoints, saturation patrols, recognition training, and safety enforcement in the city.
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