CHP checkpoint in Modesto to watch for drunk or stoned drivers. Here is the info.
The California Highway Patrol announced a DUI and drivers license checkpoint in the Modesto area starting at 9 p.m. Wednesday.
The checkpoint, looking for drunken drivers and those impaired by marijuana or other drugs, will be conducted in the unincorporated area in north Modesto until 3 a.m. Thursday.
The Modesto CHP office did not have an explanation for holding the checkpoint on New Year’s Day, instead of New Year’s Eve, other than the orders came down the chain of command.
Officer Thomas Olsen said the decision is made by the CHP’s central division office. “We absolutely have no say on when checkpoints are conducted here in Modesto,” Olsen said.
The DUI checkpoints are held on holidays or holiday weekends and are known to reduce fatalities and injuries caused by alcohol- and drug-related collisions, Olsen said. The Wednesday night operation in Modesto doesn’t mean checkpoints held by other agencies won’t be timed for New Year’s Eve.
In Stanislaus County, the Modesto-area CHP arrested 575 people on suspicion of driving while intoxicated in a three-year period from 2016 to 2018. In that same period, officers investigated 1,854 collisions related to driving under the influence.
The CHP cited national statistics that checkpoints are the most effective DUI enforcement strategy. According to recent data, 30 percent of drivers in fatal vehicle collisions had one or more drugs in their bloodstream.
CHP said sober drivers passing through the checkpoint Wednesday can expect a momentary delay as officers check drivers licenses and look for signs of alcohol or drug impairment. The agency has officers trained to recognize drivers influenced by marijuana or other substances, Olsen said.
Three years after recreational cannabis became legal in California, lawmakers have not established a THC limit for driving. The active ingredient in marijuana is known as THC.
“We run a series of field sobriety tests on the side of the roadway,” Olsen said. “Marijuana is not treated differently than alcohol. If you show impairment, we will place you under arrest.”
Law enforcement checkpoints are announced in advance to encourage people to plan ahead for ride-sharing and use of a sober designated driver. Those are the main options in an area with limited public transportation.
“That can be done well in advance,” Olsen said. “Don’t risk your safety or another person’s life out there on the highway by driving impaired.”
This story was originally published December 30, 2019 at 3:13 PM.
