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DUI Patrols On Tap For Super Bowl Sunday

LOS ANGELES (CBS) — Law enforcement officers across the region will be out in full force on Super Bowl Sunday, looking for drunk drivers.

Dozens of patrols and checkpoints are expected in Los Angeles County's 88 incorporated cities, as well as unincorporated areas.

The LAPD Emergency Operations Division is expected to set up a Super Sunday Eve drunken checkpoint in Sherman Oaks from 8 p.m. Saturday until 2 a.m. Sunday at Ventura Boulevard and Tyrone Avenue. There will also be a saturated patrol in the North Hollywood and Van Nuys area from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Super Sunday.

In the past three years, crashes caused by drunken driving in Los Angeles have claimed 64 lives and left 3,425 others injured, authorities said.

In addition to regularly scheduled patrol officers, Los Angeles County will be deploying special roving patrols in several communities as part of the "Avoid the 100 DUI Task Force."

"We're reminding everyone that real Super Bowl fans don't drive drunk," Glendora police chief Rob Castro said. "If your postseason game plan includes alcohol, make sure you have a designated sober driver in your starting line-up."

"We want everyone to make the right decision for Super Bowl," Castro said. "Having a designated sober driver should be an obvious call in everyone's play book. Making sure designated sober drivers know how much we appreciate their responsible decision is what will make this year's celebration extra special -- and extra safe."

In Riverside County, the "Avoid the 30" task force, which includes 30 law enforcement agencies acting under a unified command, will be out in force

Patrols are planned Sunday in Banning, Blythe, Canyon Lake, Coachella, Corona, Lake Elsinore, Lake Perris, Menifee, Moreno Valley, Murrieta, Perris, Riverside, San Jacinto and Temecula.

The state threshold for drunken driving is a blood-alcohol level of 0.08 percent -- three beers in a hour is typically enough for a roughly 160-pound man to blow a 0.08 percent on a breathalyzer.

Here are some tips handed down by law enforcement:
-- Make sure guests designate their sober drivers before the game starts, or arrange ride-sharing with other sober drivers.
-- Serve plenty of food;
-- Offer a non-alcoholic drinks;
-- Make dessert and coffee available in the fourth quarter;
-- Have taxi telephone numbers handy;
-- Don't let those who appear to be too drunk to drive get in the driver's seat.

(©2011 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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