In the news...

DUI crash - Two 21 year olds that had been drinking...neither wearing seatbelts...driver had minor injuries but the female had significant injuries.

According to a comment to the article, the young woman passed away from her injuries...I am still waiting to see if there is an update to the article.

http://www.redding.com/news/2010/sep/07/redding-woman-life-support-following-major-injury/

Redding woman on life support following major-injury crash

An unidentified 21-year-old Redding woman was severely injured and was on life support this morning at Mercy Medical Center in Redding after the car in which she was a passenger overturned on Old Oregon Trail at Old Oregon Trail North, California Highway Patrol officers reported.

The driver, Stephen J. Bakerrubio, 21, of Redding suffered minor injuries in the crash and was arrested on suspicion of felony driving under the influence of alcohol, a CHP spokesman said.

Bakerrubio was southbound at an unknown speed on Old Oregon Trail North around 2:55 a.m. when he lost control of his car, which began to spin counterclockwise and left the roadway, the CHP spokesman said.

The car hit an embankment and then struck a telephone pole guy wire, which caused it to overturn, the CHP said.

Bakerrubio and his passenger were both ejected, the CHP said, adding that neither were wearing seat belts.

Both were taken to Mercy Medical Center.

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http://www.chicoer.com/fromthenewspaper/ci_16018949

Cops: Anti-DUI effort nets 144 arrests

Staff Reports

Posted: 09/08/2010 12:16:28 AM PDT

PARADISE — An effort that began Aug. 20 with Butte County's eight law enforcement agencies going after drunken drivers netted 144 arrests as of midnight Monday.

That number is 29 more than for the same period last year, when 115 motorists were taken into custody.

Law enforcement agencies used a combination of DUI checkpoints and roving saturation patrols, mostly in Chico, Paradise and Gridley, to target impaired drivers.

Maximum enforcement efforts will continue throughout the county on Halloween and on Thanksgiving Eve, with a winter enforcement planned for December.

Checkpoints and saturation patrols utilize officers working overtime and are funded by grants from the California Office of Traffic Safety.

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http://www.redding.com/news/2010/sep/07/labor-day-dui-arrests-decline/

(There were some important points to highlight on this article that point to an unfortunate reality...the decline may not be because there were less offenders, rather, that there is less law enforcement to address the problem)

Labor Day DUI arrests decline

Drunken driving arrests are down this year in Shasta and Tehama counties, according to the Avoid the Six Shasta County and Avoid the Five Tehama County Labor Day campaigns.

Shasta County law enforcement officers arrested 79 people on suspicion of drunken driving between Aug. 20 and Monday night, compared with 95 arrests for DUI during the same period in 2009, officers said.

Law enforcement officers in Tehama County arrested 27 people during this time period, compared with 34 in 2009.

Anderson police Monday arrested Redding residents Chiew Saetern, 27, Kao Saechao, 20, and Cottonwood resident Adrienne Ortiz, 29.

CHP officers Monday arrested Shasta Lake resident Jack Gibbs, 47, and Redding residents Cindy Downey, 54, and Rubio Baker, 21, who was involved in a traffic collision.

Tehama County law enforcement officers made eight DUI arrests from Friday through Sunday and none on Labor Day, officers said.

The reduction in arrests is likely due to budget cuts for law enforcement, said Monty Hight, a retired California Highway Patrol officer and public information officer for both campaigns.

Redding police lost funding for two officers to patrol for drunken driving, and the Shasta County Sheriff’s Department hasn’t made any arrests for DUI this year because it hasn’t had available deputies, Hight said. He also noted that the decrease could be a result of years of anti-DUI campaigns.

“Maybe people are getting it,” Hight said. “You would hope that would be the case.”

Seven of those arrested in each county were involved in traffic collisions, an increase from last year, he said. No fatalities occurred in any of these crashes.

At least six underage individuals were arrested between the two counties, including one 15-year old, an 18-year-old and four 20-year-olds.

Avoid the Five and Six campaign crackdowns will resume during Halloween and Thanksgiving before planning for the winter campaign, Hight said.

Police, sheriff’s departments and CHP officers in both counties are encouraging drivers to report drunken drivers by dialing 911.

For more information visit californiaavoid.org.