Police Sobriety Checkpoint Operation

Ihad the unique opportunity to observe the new police sobriety checkpoint operation on New Year’s Eve. It was fascinating. I reacted with awe and horror at what I saw. What astonished me most was the great numbers that were pulled over. The great numbers that completely ignored checkpoint warnings, media messages, the LAWS, certainly their own intelligence and common sense . . . and proceeded to drive under the influence that night.

The few that were given the field sobriety test and then the Breathalyzer failed miserably and were arrested. I’ll never forget the man who sweated profusely as he staggered down the line, was then led into the Batmobile and blew a 0.19! What could he have been thinking as he stared into space with a glazed look in his eyes? And the well-dressed gentlemen who stepped out of a Cadillac with his wife and another couple. His friends were not drinking, he was. They were the passengers. He blew a 0.10. His friends were indignant and hostile at this inconvenience. He was arrested and taken away, along with the sweating man, in the patrol car.

How many hundreds more were driving under the influence, pulled over and subsequently arrested I don’t know. I left in disgust.

Those of us who live in the San Fernando Valley have a lot to be thankful for. To the phenomenal team of Los Angeles police officers who sacrifice their lives, not just on New Year’s Eve but every night, working on the DUI task force, along with Chief Dan Sullivan, Capt. Al Fried and particularly Sgt. Dennis Zine. . . . I offer my humble thanks. Their dedication, commitment and honest fervor to rid our streets of these potential killers is deeply appreciated by our organization. We see the victims of this carnage daily. The new checkpoint system will indeed make 1986 a happier and safer new year for all of us.

BARBARA BLOOMBERG

Bloomberg is president of the Los Angeles chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers.