DUI Checkpoint Scheduled in Berlin

BERLIN, CT — As part of a grant from the Connecticut Department of Transportation's Highway Safety Division to support increased DUI detection and enforcement efforts, the Berlin Police Department will conduct a DUI checkpoint on Thursday, Dec. 1.

The checkpoint, a regional effort with officers from the Wethersfield and Rocky Hill police departments participating, will be set up on the Berlin Turnpike south of Deming Road, Deputy Chief John Klett said.

The purpose of these patrols and checkpoints is to reduce accidents and injuries related to DUI drivers and help provide safe travel, Klett said.

The enforcement program will run from Nov. 2016 through Labor Day 2017. The grant provides 75 percent reimbursement of the overtime costs related to these efforts. The grant will help to provide funding to staff additional DUI patrols, as well as roadside sobriety checkpoints. Roadside sobriety checkpoints have been shown to be the most effective method to detect and apprehend under the influence drivers.

Additional DUI patrols may be conducted on Wednesday through Saturday nights on selected dates and times during the coming year. These patrols will specifically target DUI operation, but will also enforce any other violations observed during the course of this operation.

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