St. Patrick’s Day Traffic Enforcement Nets 12 Arrests, 344 Tickets

St. Patrick’s Day traffic enforcement. Maui Now graphic.

By Wendy Osher

Maui police issued a total of 344 citations and made 12 arrests during the Saint Patrick’s Day Impaired Driving Prevention Campaign that ran from Monday, March 16 through Wednesday, March 18, 2015.

As part of the campaign, the Maui Police Department conducted increased saturation patrols using unmarked patrol vehicles and set up sobriety checkpoints at various locations across the island.

Maui Police Sergeant Nick Krau issued a statement saying, “Saint Patrick’s Day rivals Halloween and New Years as the busiest night for the Traffic Section’s Vehicle Homicide Unit and DUI Task Force Unit.”

He continued saying, “Many private parties and local liquor establishments sanction Saint Patrick’s Day celebrations,” making increased patrols and DUI checkpoints “very necessary.”

During a nine hour traffic enforcement effort on the night of Saint Patrick’s Day, Police made 12 traffic related arrests: 9 for impaired driving; and 3 for other traffic crimes.

A total of 344 traffic citations were issued between March 16 and 18, 2015, including: 13 for no driver’s license; 22 for no vehicle insurance; 17 for no seat belt or child restraint violations; 13 for using a cellular phone while driving; and 279 citations for other traffic related incidents.

Krau said all nine impaired driving arrests were made at one of the multiple intoxication control checkpoints set up during the campaign. The average age of the impaired driving offenders was 31 years old, according to information compiled and released by Sgt. Krau.

“Officers at the intoxication control checkpoints noticed numerous vehicles with occupants coming from Saint Patrick’s Day celebrations having designated drivers,” said Krau.  “The Maui Police Department would like to commend everyone who celebrated Saint Patrick’s Day responsibly.”

In addition to DUI enforcement, the campaign also focused on seat belt and cell phone violations. The minimum fine for not wearing a seat belt is $102; and the minimum fine for using an electronic device while driving is $297 in Maui County.

The last DUI enforcement campaign on Maui was a three-week “Drive Sober or get Pulled Over” campaign that was held over the Christmas and New Years holidays from Dec. 15, 2014 to Jan. 2, 2015.

Police also conducted DUI enforcement from Aug. 15 to Sept. 1, 2014.  During that campaign, police arrested 57 motorists for driving while under the influence of an intoxicant.

Police also made 13 traffic related arrests during the 10 hour traffic enforcement effort to keep roads safe on Halloween night.  The arrests included 9 for impaired driving