Beach officers nab drunken drivers on holiday

VIRGINIA BEACH

Decked out in green beads, a backward Guinness cap and a T-shirt professing his Irish heritage, the 29-year-old swore he had nothing to drink at a St. Patrick's Day party.

Officer Brian Wessler wasn't convinced when he pulled him over at a checkpoint on General Booth Boulevard. A field sobriety test confirmed his suspicion. The preliminary breath test registered a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.11, above the legal limit for driving by 0.03 points. The man left the scene in handcuffs. A tow truck hauled his vehicle away.

The arrest was one of at least five made at three Beach checkpoints for driving under the influence Tuesday night. The stops are designed to prevent drunken driving by catching those behind the wheel who have had too much.

"I view the checkpoints as proactive rather than reactive," Officer J.M. Baker said. "They make people think, maybe there's going to be a checkpoint on the way home, maybe I should drink responsibly."

St. Patrick's Day, July 4 and Labor Day now top New Year's Eve as the biggest days for DUIs, said Sgt. Scott Wichtendahl, who heads the Selective Enforcement Team, which

specializes in DUI and traffic. The department made a total of eight DUI arrests this St. Patrick's Day, compared with six on Dec. 31, New Year's Eve.

Officers checked 328 cars between 8 p.m. and 1 a.m. at the St. Patrick's Day checkpoints in the 2400 block of Shore Drive, on General Booth Boulevard and on the I-264 West access ramp on South Independence Boulevard.

At the checkpoints, which are usually located in areas with a high concentration of bars, officers ask for each driver's license and registration, check that seatbelts are being used properly, look for broken equipment on the vehicle and watch for signs of impairment.

Baker and the other seven officers on the team are experts at spotting drunken drivers. Speeding, weaving or driving without headlights often clue them in, he said.

They've seen people stuff their mouths with pennies or squirt cologne on their tongues in an attempt to trick the breath test. Drivers claim they've only had one drink. They throw half-finished 12-packs of beer out the window.

The majority of Baker's DUI arrests come after midnight, and most offenders are white males between 21 and 35, he said.

There are exceptions.

As Baker left the checkpoint on General Booth Boulevard just before midnight Tuesday, he spotted a silver SUV driving without its headlights on.

When he pulled the vehicle over, he found an 18-year-old college student and her three friends. They said they had just come from a club and hadn't been drinking. The driver's clothing was disheveled, and Baker smelled alcohol.

He asked the woman to follow his finger with her eyes, take nine steps and turn around, and balance on one leg while counting "one one thousand, two one thousand, three one thousand."

Her performance was shaky, and she registered a blood-alcohol concentration of 0.07, which is 0.05 points above the legal limit for drivers under age 21.

Baker arrested her. "I have zero tolerance for people under 21," he said. "Because if you don't act now at that age, they're just going to continue."

It can only take one beer to register a 0.02 blood-alcohol level. For most people, two or three beers will put them over the legal limit, Baker said.

People convicted of driving under the influence, a Class I misdemeanor, face a $2,500 fine and up to a year in jail, he said. But the court often waives those penalties and substitutes the Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program, which includes alcohol education and counseling.

Those convicted also lose their license for a year but may be able to obtain a restricted license to drive to work, doctor's appointments and day care, Baker said.

T hree DUI convictions within 10 years is a felony, Baker said.

The Selective Enforcement Team's goal is to prevent alcohol-related accidents, like the one on South Birdneck Road last week where a drunken driver crashed her vehicle into a couple. The head-on collision left her in a coma, maimed an elderly woman and severely injured her husband, Baker said.

"It's scary how many drunk drivers are on the road every night," Baker said. People are heading home, "and the next thing they know, they've got someone crashing into them."

Some people get lucky, like 45-year-old Rick Bowman of Norfolk.

Officers pulled him over at the checkpoint on the I-264 access ramp around 12:30 a.m. He had been drinking at Keagans Irish Pub and Restaurant at Town Center and was just at the legal limit for blood-alcohol concentration for drivers.

By the time an officer could have taken him to the police station for an official breath test, he would have been below the limit. So the officers allowed some friends to come pick him up.

He said he had never been through a police checkpoint before or been charged with drunken driving.

"It's scary," he said as he waited for his ride. But "it's good that they do it. It's needed."

Kathy Adams, (757) 222-5155, kathy.adams@pilotonline.com