News Release from: Clackamas Co. Sheriff's Office
Sheriff's Office provides DUII saturation patrol results
Posted: June 22, 2008, 10:42 a.m.
Clackamas County Sheriff's Office Lt. Graham Phalen offers the following report on the DUII saturation patrol conducted Saturday night and Sunday morning in Clackamas County:
"Last night's DUII saturation patrol seemed to go off very well, and we really made an impact on the impaired drivers,” he said. “Everyone who participated in this mission has reason to be proud of the great work they did -- and the enthusiasm surrounding this effort was fantastic."
Participant stats from Lt. Phalen:
- 46 people involved in the operation
- 30 cars (25 dedicated and 5 others) involved in DUII enforcement
- 3 Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) personnel
- 4 Deputy District Attorneys (DAs)
OSP and OLCC numbers are pending, but the preliminary results are:
- 21 custodies
- 16 DUII arrests -- including a hit-and-run incident that law-enforcement personnel witnessed and were able to swoop down on immediately
- 1 Minor in Possession (MIP)
- 1 weapons charge
- 2 drug charges
- 3 warrant arrests
- 222 stops
- 150 citations
- 123 warnings
- 27 towed vehicles
An earlier Sheriff’s Office release on the saturation-patrol effort follows.
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Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office announces multi-agency DUII saturation patrols
- Nationally, impaired drivers continue to kill someone every 30 minutes.
- Only one arrest is made for every 772 occurrences of driving under the influence.
- One in three Americans will be affected by this violent crime in their lifetime.
The Clackamas County Sheriff's Office recognizes the enormous emotional and financial toll impaired drivers have on the community.
In response, the Sheriff’s Office has partnered with several other agencies for enhanced summer DUII enforcement patrols starting June 21, 2008.
Among the participating agencies:
These enhanced patrols will focus on high-incident locations during weekend and evening hours. Alcohol-related crashes increase in frequency from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. -- with the highest frequency between 1 to 3 a.m.
"This increase can be associated with the hours that bars and taverns close for the evening,” says CCSO Lt. Graham Phalen, lead coordinator of the patrol effort. "OLCC licenses these establishments, and will assist with intelligence and enforcement during the patrols".
The scope of the project requires extensive planning and collaboration. Personnel on hand include patrol staff, as well as support services (including corrections and reserve units) to assist with detention and booking. In all, over 40 staff persons will be on hand for the June 21 kick-off event -- with future patrols occurring throughout the summer months.
In Clackamas County, over 10 percent of total reported crashes are alcohol-related, with an increase during the summer months. The county employs several strategies to help reduce impaired driving such as minor sales checks, DUII Intensive supervision programs, and impact panels.
Clackamas Safe Communities also offers projects focused on the elimination of impaired driving. One program, the Teen Triple Threat, invited local high-school students to create safe driving messages about the dangers of drinking and driving. Safe Communities also assisted with funding for the enhanced patrols. More information about the Safe Communities program can be found at www.ClackamasSafeCommunities.org.
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Contact info:
Lt. Graham G. Phalen, CCSO Patrol / 1st Shift Watch Commander
Jim Strovink, Detective