What better way to kick-off a safe start to the New Year than to receive a $73,000 grant to fund an anti-DUI program? The Palm Desert Police Department received the large grant from the state Office of Traffic Safety (OTS). According to the director, Christopher J. Murphy, the DUI checkpoints funded by such grants have been “an essential part of the phenomenal reduction in DUI deaths” from 2006 to 2010 in California. He added, “But since the tragedy of DUI accounts for nearly one third of traffic fatalities, Palm Desert needs the high visibility enforcement and public awareness that this grant will provide.”

The special grant is going to use the funds to target impaired drivers and also educate the public on the dangers of DUI by creating checkpoints. According to Palm Desert Police, the DUI checkpoints have been the most effective tool to any DUI enforcement strategy, and are said to save $6 for every $1 spent.

On November 19 of this year, the Palm Desert Police Department received a $100,072.00 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety to fund a year-long program aimed to prevent deaths on the roadways through special enforcement and raising public awareness. The grant was said to fund Specialized DUI training in Standardized Field Sobriety Testing, Advanced Roadside Impaired Driving Enforcement, and Drug Recognition Evaluation. The grant was also expected to fund DUI Saturation Patrols, compilation of DUI Hot Sheets, Court sting operations that would catch drivers using their vehicle after a court appearance after their license had been pulled for DUI, and stakeout operations to observe repeat DUI offender probationers with revoked or suspended licenses.

The grant comes at a time when DUI enforcement is at its highest. Programs like DUI checkpoints are used to reduce the number of deaths and injuries related to drunk driving, which is especially high during major holidays like Christmas and New Year’s.