26 Drunk Drivers In
Six Hours Detained In
Guanacaste
Partying without a
alcohol is not the Costa
Rican way partying. And
the hot sun of
Guanacaste is not very
enjoyable without a
"cold" one. That is fine
as long as you don't
drink and drive. And the
Policía de Tránsito,
with the new Ley de
Tránsito to back them
up, is there to make
sure that those who
drink and then get
behind the wheel of a
vehilce will go to jail.
At least that is what 26
drivers in Filadelfia,
Guanacaste, found in the
early hours of Monday
morning during only six
hours.
Tránsito officials
believe that the group
of drivers had come from
a party only kilometres
away from their spot
check that began around
2am.
Óscar Angulo, regional
director of the Policía
de Tránsito in
Guanacaste, assures that
there is a zero
tolerance policy in
effect and drunk drivers
expose themselves to one
to three years jail,
having their vehicle
confiscated and losing
their license.
In the case of the 26
drivers, Angulo
confirmed that they were
all handed over to the
Fiscalía de Santa Cruz
where they will be
charged under the
provisions of the new
Ley de Tránsito and wait
for a judge to decide
their fate.
Angulo said that some of
the drivers had a blood
alcohol content of 2.9.
The legal limit as of
December 23 is 0.75.
"We are not on the hunt
for drunk drivers, but
they force us to be
tough with them because
they (drunk drivers)
aren't getting the
message", said Angulo.
The regional director
reiterated the words of
the ministra de Obras
Publicas y Transportes (MOPT),
Karla Gonzalez, that the
new law is not to stop
people from drinking,
but rather not to drive
after drinking.
Accompanying the Policía
de Tránsito spotchecks
are members of the
Fuerza Pública (police)
who are on hand to place
the drunk drivers under
arrest. José Domingo
Cruz, regional director
of the Fuerza Pública
said that the police
department legal
advisors also joined
police on the Guanacaste
spotcheck to ensure that
due process is carried
out.
Both Angulo and Cruz
affirmed that the
increased spotchecks in
Guanacaste will continue
for the coming week.
So far since this month
82 drunk drivers have
been arrested. In
December 2007, the
number was 300.
Henry Oviedo, of the
departamento de
Operaciones Policiales
del Tránsito, believes
the tougher sanctions of
the new Ley de Tránsito
is responsible for the
marked decrease. Until
December 23, drunk
drivers only faced a
¢20.000
colones fines and their
vehicle impounded.
Oviedo added that the
death toll on the
nation's roads so far
this month is 31.
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