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# SM police get their swerve on
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/sm-police-get-their-swerve-on/
- Published: 2006-12-20T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T23:24:39.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Crime, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*Checkpoints attempt to curb holiday accidents*

*By Daily Press staff*

SMPD HDQTRS. — One drunk driver was taken off the streets Friday after attempting to slip through a sobriety checkpoint set up by police along the 1200 block of Ocean Avenue. In all, 1,244 cars passed through the Santa Monica Police Department checkpoint, 245 were screened and one was arrested for driving under the influence, according to SMPD Lt. Alex Padilla.

Another driver was cited for driving without a license, two cars were towed and five other drivers received citations for miscellaneous vehicle code infractions, said Padilla.

The checkpoint, during which drivers were randomly selected to determine whether or not they’d been drinking alcohol, was part of the SMPD’s efforts to curb drunk driving during the holidays. The check-points are funded through a grant from the state Office of Traffic Safety as part of the national “Drunk Driving. Over The Limit.

Under Arrest,” campaign aimed at bringing awareness to the community about the dangers of driving while intoxicated during the holiday season.

The month of December is considered to be the deadliest when it comes to traffic accidents involving impaired drivers, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Tuesday announced the award of $3.7 million to 93 law enforcement agencies across the state to conduct sobriety checkpoints during the holidays and continuing into 2007.

“Public safety is my No. 1 priority,”

Schwarzenegger said.“Driving drunk or otherwise impaired is unacceptable and a serious threat to themselves and to those around them. I am committed to supporting our state’s law enforcement with the tools necessary to detect and remove impaired drivers and keep our roadways safe.”

In California in 2005, 1,574 people were killed and another 30,810 were injured in alcohol-related crashes, representing an increase of approximately 8 percent in alcohol-related fatalities over 2004.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/122006-01_01.jpg)

CURBED: In attempts to curb holiday drinking and driving, the SMPD established a checkpoint on Ocean Avenue over the weekend, arresting one driver. (Photo: Photo courtesy)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on December 20, 2006.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/122006.pdf?ref=smdp.com)