Officers Out in Full Force for Holiday Weekend

Pleasanton is one of several cities in Alameda County that will be blanketed by anti-DUI efforts this holiday weekend.

The Alameda County Sheriff's Department is joining local police departments and the California Highway Patrol in a multi-agency crackdown that will see more patrols and checkpoints around the county from Friday and until Monday.

The sheriff's department is using several law enforcement strategies, according to Livermore Police Department Lt. Ava Garavatti, who also coordinates Avoid the 21, a countywide program that aims to stem drunk driving.

Garavatti said the multi-pronged approach includes: increasing DUI checkpoints during risky time periods such as this Independence Day weekend; saturating areas identified as problematic with more patrols; and mobilizing patrol units for quick response to incidents.

Avoid the 21 is named for the 21 cities in the county participating in the program, including Pleasanton, Dublin, Livermore, Albany and Union City.  All of those cities' police departments are collaborating with the sheriff's department and will be sending extra patrols out targeting drunk drivers this holiday weekend, Garavatti said.

A drunk-driving conviction can yield fines up to $7,000, according to Garavatti.

"Getting arrested for a DUI is a very costly encounter both in terms of financial and human cost," she said. "When you drive and drive you need to know that it isn't worth it."

Garavatti said Avoid the 21 will also be active during the summer, when the program increases DUI enforcement on Aug. 20 through Labor Day weekend on Sept. 6.

Avoid the 21 recently received a statewide award from the Office of Traffic Safety for its anti-DUI efforts, according to Garavatti.  She said Alameda County received first place for the award based on the number of DUI-related arrests in the county, the number of participating cities and the range and effectiveness of the county's anti-DUI strategies.