Police Receive Grant For DUI Checkpoints, More In Manhattan Beach

MANHATTAN BEACH, CA — The Manhattan Beach Police Department has received an $80,000 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS) for a one-year enforcement and education program. The money will be used to fund various activities intended to reduce deaths and injuries on California roads, said Sergeant Tim Zins, MBPD community affairs and public information officer.

MBPD expects to use funding from the OTS for numerous programs, including:

• DUI/driver’s license checkpoints.
• Patrols specifically looking for suspected alcohol and/or drug-impaired drivers.
• Patrols targeting violations of California’s hands-free cell phone law and vehicle code violations by drivers, motorcyclists, bicyclists and pedestrians that put other roadway users at risk.
• Patrols targeting the primary causes of crashes: Speeding, improper turns, running stop signs or signals, right-of-way violations and driving on the wrong side of the road.
• Patrols specifically looking for seat belt and child safety seat violations.
• Traffic safety education presentations for youth and community members on distracted and impaired driving, bicycle and pedestrian safety.
• Officer training to identify suspected impaired drivers and conduct sobriety tests.

“Getting in a vehicle remains one of the most dangerous things we do,” OTS Director Barbara Rooney said in a news release. “We must continue to work with our partners in law enforcement to shift that realization and make traveling on our roads safer.”

The grant covers activities in the 2021 federal fiscal year, which runs from October 1, 2020 to September 30, 2021. Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.