On April 30, 2011, the St. Mary’s CountySheriff’s Office in cooperation with the Maryland State Police, Leonardtown Barrack conducted a Sobriety Checkpoint on Maryland Route 4 at the base of the ThomasJohnsonBridge in California, Maryland. Once the sobriety checkpoint was completed the officers continued their efforts with saturation patrols in an attempt to locate and arrest impaired drivers.
Three hundred and seventy-nine (379) vehicles passed through the checkpoint. As a result of the checkpoint and the saturation patrols four vehicles were stopped and the drivers were administered a standard field sobriety test to determine their level of alcohol intoxication. The Maryland State Police arrested two individuals for operating a motor while under the influence of alcohol.
In addition, two vehicles were stopped as a result of violation alerts from the St. Mary’s CountySheriff’s Office mobile license plate reader. The Sheriff’s Office Traffic Safety Unit has mounted a portable camera on an unmarked police cruiser. The portable camera scans license plates and transmits the information to a computer linked to the Motor Vehicle Administration. The Motor Vehicle Administration’s computers then check the vehicle’s registration information for violations such as suspended registration and/or vehicle insurance violations.
“We are very pleased with the cooperative efforts of our officers and the results of the checkpoint and saturation patrols. We arrested impaired drivers and remove unsafe motor vehicles from the roadways.” (Sgt. Harold Young, St. Mary’s
