Multi-Department DWI Check Leads to Arrests

If you drove through Bronxville, Eastchester, Tuckahoe or Scarsdale on Friday and Saturday night, you may have noticed police check points set up at various spots throughout the towns and villages.

On both nights, police from each department participated in the U.S. Department of Transportation's "Drunk Driving, Over the Limit, Under Arrest" initiative, which began across the country last week and runs through Labor Day weekend.

"During the initiative, which focused on educating drivers and passengers on current DWI laws, injury and fatality statistics, and legal consequences of driving while ability impaired by drugs or alcohol, officers from each department conducted numerous sobriety checkpoints where drivers were greeted, screened, and handed out informational brochures," Eastchester Police Chief Timothy Bonci wrote in a release.

According to Bonci, the checks led to one arrest for driving while intoxicated, five arrests for traffic misdemeanors, one misdemeanor arrest for obstructing governmental administration, 2nd degree and one misdemeanor arrest for possession of a forged driver's license.

On Friday night in Tuckahoe, officers were set up at Main Street and Fairview Avenue from about 7 p.m. to midnight and then from midnight until about 3 a.m. at Elm Street and Yonkers Avenue and then at Elm Street and Lake Avenue, Lt. Ray Stabile said.

On Saturday, Tuckahoe teamed up with the other departments for checkpoints in Eastchester and Bronxville.

According to Tuckahoe police, at about 9:20 p.m. on Friday, a 64-year-old driver from California came through the checkpoint and was pulled over and given field sobriety tests. He failed and was taken into headquarters, where he was given a datamaster test. He blew a .07 BAC, which is just under the legal limit, Lt. Stabile said. The driver was given a summons for driving while ability impaired, which is a violation. 

Then, at 1:31 a.m., police said a car pulled up to the checkpoint and when the driver rolled down the window, there was a strong scent of marijuana. The driver was asked to step out of the car, where police said they found a ceramic pipe filled with marijuana and still lit. The driver admitted to smoking marijuana, police said, and was given a field sobriety test, which he failed.

According to police, the driver, a 23-year-old Tuckahoe resident, also admitted to drinking. When he was given the datamaster test, he blew a .12 BAC, which is 1.5 times over the legal limit, police said. More marijuana was found in the car when it was impounded, they said.

Police charged the driver with driving while intoxicated, criminal possession of marijuana and possession of marijuana. He was released on his own recognizance and is due back in court on September 7.

Meanwhile, in Bronxville, checkpoints were set up from about 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. on Park Place and the Pondfield Road Underpass as well as on Paxton Avenue at the entrance to the Bronx River and the west side traffic circle.

According to Bronxville Lt. Richard Bunyan, on Friday night at about 11:30 p.m., an officer ran the license plate on a 1996 Toyota, which indicated it was suspended. The driver, a 29-year-old Yonkers resident, was issued a summons. He is due in court on September 15.

On Saturday at 8:22 p.m. police said a 62-year-old Yonkers resident was arrested for driving while ability impaired. And later, at 8:38 p.m., a 33-year-old Yonkers resident was arrested for unlawful possession of marijuana, according to police.

"The initiative represents our continued commitment to enforce DWI laws through multi-jurisdictional cooperation, which allows us to share resources to conduct roadblocks," said Eastchester's Bonci.

The Westchester County STOP-DWI office also helped fund and coordinate the effort.