DUI Patrols to Deploy on Cinco de Mayo

As Hermosa Beach residents and visitors will be celebrating  on Thursday, the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and plan to patrol the area during festivities as part of a crackdown on drunk driving, according to officials.

The county's Avoid the 100 Driving Under the Influence Task Force often deploys overtime patrols onto city streets when a festivity or holiday involving alcohol occurs—and Cinco de Mayo is no exception.

Patrols will be in the area Thursday to look for signs of drunk driving, and the California Highway Patrol plans to monitor nearby freeways. 

Hermosa Beach police officers will be actively patrolling Hermosa's downtown and residential areas, police told Patch on Wednesday.

If officers suspect a driver has been drinking, the driver could be pulled over and asked to complete a field sobriety test. Drivers who fail the test could face jail time and owe more than $6,600 in fines and fees, according to the California Department of Alcohol and Drug Programs.

Cinco de Mayo is a holiday devoted to celebrating Southern California's rich cultural diversity. If you'll be attending a Cinco de Mayo party, county sheriffs advise to:

• arrange rides home for your friends, family, co-workers and yourself before the drinking begins;
• cut back on the amount of drinks you plan to bring to the party, and provide plenty of food;
• don’t drink more than one or two beverages over several hours. 

Funding for the county's Avoid the 100 DUI Task Force is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.