OPD puts stop to drunk driving on holiday

By Amy Weaver

Published: July 4, 2008

Several patrol cars, with blue lights flashing, were at the intersection of Marvin Parkway and Gateway Drive in Opelika Friday — not because of an accident, but to prevent any.

Officers from the Opelika Police Department patrolled the intersection for two hours Friday evening, stopping each and every motorist, in an effort to find drunk drivers.

Many drivers made it through with a thank you and a smile, but some drivers got angry with officers. The checkpoint was an inconvenience for them, especially when the wait to get to an officer was 10 to 12 cars deep. The passenger of one vehicle rolled down the window and complained because the idling was a waste of his $4 gas.

What the drivers failed to realize, according to Carlos Kimbrough, director of the Central Alabama Highway Safety Office, was that the effort was for their own good. He said Alabama is one of the states that proudly boosts a decrease in the number of alcohol-related roadway fatalities as a direct result of these efforts.

“If you drive in Alabama and you know there is a chance there will be a checkpoint, you will be less apt to drink and drive,” Kimbrough said. “We still have folks out there that just don’t get it, and we want to catch them.”

Officer Thomas Stinson said he’s done a few check points in his 15-year career and they see a countless number of vehicles each time. He said checkpoints are valid because they not only get drunk drivers, but also those drivers who are driving without a license, proof of insurance or on an expired tag.

Passing through a checkpoint can be easy, Kimbrough said, as long as the driver can quickly provide the officer with a license and proof of insurance. Those that don’t can expect a wait and probably a ticket. Kimbrough said every driver that was asked to pull over Friday night was either ticketed or arrested.

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