Austin PD Made 200-Plus DWI Arrests During Memorial Day/Rot Rally

AUSTIN, TX — Police made more than 200 DWI arrests during the period between Memorial Day and the Republic of Texas Rally, a massive biker convention that took place over the weekend, according to newly released numbers.

Police on Monday released the results of their "no refusal" initiative that took place between May 24 to June 11, a period running from the Memorial Day weekend to the end of the ROT rally. A "no refusal" weekend enables police to secure bench warrants to draw blood from motorists unwilling to submit to a sobriety check.

During the period of enforcement, 215 arrest were made for DWI. Here's the breakdown:

• Blood search warrants: 93
• Consent breath samples: 81
• Consent Blood Samples: 41

Of those arrests, the following number had enhanced DWI charges:

• Consent breath samples over .15: 35
• Class A misdemeanor DWI (with prior conviction): 19
• Felony DWI (2 or more prior convictions): 17
• Felony DWI with a child passenger: 6
• Intoxication Assault: 1

The total exceeds the 166 such arrests made during the comparable period last year. Like in 2017, Patch has requested numbers for the specific dates of the ROT rally in order to ascertain when the bulk of arrests were made. This story will be updated when Patch receives that more specific breakdown.

Related stories:

Austin Medics See Uptick In Motorcycle Accidents Amid ROT Rally

Huge Biker Rally To Close 50 City Blocks In Downtown Austin

ROT Tally: 4 Bike Crashes, 7 Hospitalized, 1 Death, 166 DWIs

"The Austin Police Department is continuously focused on preventing lives from being lost on the streets, highways and waterways of Austin," police said in a press advisory. "The Department is dedicated to making the roadways and waterways of Austin safe for residents and visitors through education and enforcement."

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