Multi-City Crackdown Targets Drunk Drivers

In an ambitious holiday crackdown, more than 30 police officers from eight law enforcement agencies hit the streets of North County on Saturday night in search of drunk drivers.

Police in Buena Park, Brea, Anaheim, Fullerton, Placentia, La Habra, La Palma and Yorba Linda, as well as the California Highway Patrol, took part in the effort. As of 10 p.m., they had arrested five people on suspicion of drunk driving.

The agencies have been assigning extra units to evening patrols since Thanksgiving. But Saturday night marked the first coordinated effort by the agencies to nab suspected drunk drivers.

“This is the biggest mobilization we’ve had in North County so far this year,” said Buena Park Police Sgt. Rod Lininger. “We are trying to focus more resources on finding and arresting these drivers.”

In addition to extra patrols, Operation Office Party has carried out several sobriety checkpoints on major North County thoroughfares such as Orangethorpe Avenue, Imperial Highway and Harbor Boulevard.

The added car and motorcycle units supplement the regular patrols each community already provides.

“There are a lot of demands placed on the patrol units other than looking for drunk drivers,” Lininger said. “This way, we can watch more closely than we normally do.”

The officers watch for erratic driving, including motorists who drive too slowly, change lanes excessively or apply their brakes suddenly and too frequently, he added.

Officials said they will tabulate the number of arrests made under Operation Office Party when the program concludes next weekend. Buena Park police estimate that their extra officers have arrested one to three drivers a night since Thanksgiving.

The crackdown comes as the number fatal drunk-driving accidents declines in Orange County. In 1995, 53 people died in drunk-driving cases throughout the county, down from 89 deaths in 1991.

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Drunk-Driving Deaths

Drunk-driving deaths nationwide increased in 1995, while the numbers in both Orange County and California decreased:

Orange County: ‘95: 53

California: ‘95: 1,343

U.S.: ‘95: 17,274

* Most recent date available

Source: California Highway Patrol and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; Researched by APRIL JACKSON / Los Angeles Times