PASADENA, Calif.—As friends and family plan vacations during the final days of summer, Pasadena Police Department is reminding everyone to stay safe by always choosing a sober way to go.
No matter how you choose to celebrate the end of summer and Labor Day weekend, make sure you do so responsibly. Take the necessary precautions to protect yourself and your family by buckling up, ditching the distractions, following the speed limit, and never driving impaired.
To help keep our community safe during the busy late summer and Labor Day weekend travel season, Pasadena Police Department will have additional officers on patrol Aug. 18 through Labor Day, Sept. 6, looking for drivers suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs. The increased efforts to address impaired driving are part of the national Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign.
In addition to roving patrols, the police department will hold a DUI checkpoint on Aug. 20 from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m. at an undisclosed location within the city of Pasadena.
“Driving impaired is risky and puts yourself and others around you in serious danger,” Pasadena police Lt. Anthony Russo said. “If you are taking a road trip over the next few weeks, make good choices and drive like your closest friends and family are in the cars around you.”
Forty-five people were killed in crashes throughout California over the 2019 Labor Day holiday, and the California Highway Patrol (CHP) made more than 1,000 arrests for driving under the influence during the 78-hour Labor Day weekend enforcement period.
Driving while impaired is not just from alcohol. Prescription drugs, over-the-counter medications, and marijuana may also impair your driving. If you plan on drinking or taking medications with a driving warning label, let someone who is sober drive. If you see someone who is driving impaired, call 9-1-1.
Funding for this and other traffic enforcement programs is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.