Austin Police Made Nearly 60 DWI Arrests Over Labor Day Weekend

AUSTIN, TX — Police made nearly 60 arrests during a DWI crackdown over the Labor Day weekend, officials said on Wednesday.

Police conducted what's called a "no refusal" initiative from Aug. 29 to Sept. 2 from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. each day that allowed them to obtain bench warrants to draw blood from drivers unwilling to be tested for drunkenness.

The upshot: Police made 57 DWI-related arrests, 27 of those requiring an aforementioned bench warrant to draw blood. Another 18 arrests came after consensual breath samples and 12 from voluntary blood samples.

Of these arrests, police said, the following number had enhanced DWI charges:

• Consent Breath Samples over .15= 5
• Class A Misd DWI (with prior conviction) = 8
• Felony DWI (2 or more prior convictions) = 1
• Felony DWI Child Passenger = 2
• Boating While Intoxicated = 1
• Intoxication Assault = 1

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