The other side of holiday frivolity? Police and Highway Patrolmen on the look-out for unsafe behavior. The Bishop Police Department has already conducted a DUI Checkpoint and, along with other law enforcement agencies, have jumped into the Click It or Ticket campaign to look for unbelted drivers.

DUI CheckpointFirst the checkpoint. Last Friday evening, Bishop Police and CHP set up a DUI and drivers license checkpoint south of Bishop. According to Bishop Police Lieutenant Fred Gomez, officers checked out 930 cars. They issued six citations for driving without a license and one citation for an open container. These checkpoints are designed to raise awareness of drunk driving and drivers license laws.

As the holiday gets underway, officers have launched the Click It or Ticket seat belt campaign now through June 5th. Bishop Police pointed out that the fines and fees for first time adult seat belt violations starts at $142. For unbelted children under 16, the fine starts at $445.

Officers will focus on night time enforcement when passengers are least likely to buckle up and most likely to die in crashes. Officers said that nationwide, of those who died in night time crashes in 2009, nearly 62% were not wearing seat belts at the time of their fatal crashes.

Bishop Police Chief Chris Carter made it clear that law enforcement throughout our area will look for seat belt violators day and night. Chief Carter said, “Citations will be issued without warning. It’s not just about avoiding a costly ticket,” said the Chief. “It’s about keeping the ones you care about alive.”

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