Suffolk County Sheriff Errol D. Toulon, Jr. announced today that Deputy Sheriffs will be increasing their DWI patrols for New Year’s Eve to ensure roadways remain safe as residents ring in the New Year.
“Our Deputy Sheriffs continue to do an incredible job patrolling for impaired drivers. This year, they have surpassed the previous year’s DWI arrests—making many lifesaving arrests, including those under Leandra’s Law and incidents involving wrong-way drivers. They are closing the year strong with enhanced DWI enforcement during this critical time so we can all safely celebrate the holidays with friends and family,” said Suffolk County Sheriff Errol D. Toulon, Jr.
The Sheriff’s Office DWI Enforcement Team has made a record number of DWI arrests this year with 209 arrests to date. Included in the arrests are 37 aggravated DWI charges (the defendant had a BAC of .18 or higher), 15 arrests involving drivers with prior DWI convictions, 2 wrong-way drivers, and 3 Leandra’s Law arrests.
Leandra’s Law (the Child Passenger Protection Act) is a NYS law making it an automatic felony on the first offense to drive drunk with a person 15 or younger inside the vehicle. The law was named after 11-year-old Leandra Rosado, who was killed on the Henry Hudson Parkway on October 11, 2009, when she was a passenger in a car driven by an intoxicated driver.
Additional arrests include 1 case under New York’s Under 21 Zero Tolerance law and 13 arrests for driving while impaired by drugs. For more information, please reach out to Public Information Officer Vicki DiStefano at Victoria.DiStefano@SuffolkCountyNY.gov.