Northern California Police Hold DUI Checkpoints as Drunk Driving Rises with Warmer Weather

Departments in Elk Grove, Rocklin, and Modesto aim to raise awareness and get impaired drivers off the roads

Mar. 21, 2026 at 5:58am

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Police departments across Northern California, including in Elk Grove, Rocklin, and Modesto, held DUI checkpoints on Friday to monitor for impaired and unlicensed drivers as the warmer weather historically leads to an increase in drunk driving incidents. The goal is to raise awareness and educate the public, with officers making over 250 DUI arrests in Elk Grove alone last year, a 10% increase from the prior year.

Why it matters

Drunk driving continues to be a major public safety issue, with over 12,400 fatalities in 2023 nationwide. Police departments have been personally impacted by these tragedies, with officers killed on the job by drunk drivers, underscoring the critical need to get impaired drivers off the roads.

The details

At the checkpoints, police screened over 1,000 vehicles, leading to one arrest. While the departments aim to make arrests, their primary goal is to raise awareness and educate the public about the dangers of drunk driving. The Elk Grove Police Department, for example, saw a 10% increase in DUI arrests in 2025 compared to the prior year.

  • On Friday, March 13, the Rancho Cordova Police Department held checkpoints.
  • On Friday, March 20, the Rocklin, Modesto, and Elk Grove Police Departments held checkpoints.

The players

Lt. Greg Jensen

An officer with the Rocklin Police Department who spoke about the consequences of driving while impaired.

Julissa Ortiz

A spokesperson for the Elk Grove Police Department who shared statistics and the department's goals for the checkpoints.

Officer Ty Lenehan

An Elk Grove police officer who was fatally hit on the job by a drunk driver in 2022.

Officer Matt Redding

A Rocklin police officer who in 2004 arrested a DUI suspect for killing an eight-year-old boy, and was then tragically struck and killed by a drunk driver the following year in 2005.

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What they’re saying

“In 2023, 12,429 people lost their lives from drinking and driving.”

— Lt. Greg Jensen, Rocklin Police Department

“Our goal is simple. We want to keep impaired drivers off the roadways. We want everyone to get home safely.”

— Julissa Ortiz, Elk Grove Police Department

“Typically, DUI kills right around 10,000 people a year, and all 10,000 of those deaths, that's, you know, family member to somebody, and they're all preventable.”

— Julissa Ortiz, Elk Grove Police Department

What’s next

The judge in the Elk Grove case will decide on Tuesday whether to allow the DUI suspect out on bail.

The takeaway

This story highlights the ongoing battle against drunk driving, which continues to claim thousands of lives each year despite awareness efforts. The personal tragedies experienced by police departments underscore the critical need to get impaired drivers off the roads and reinforce the importance of the community working together to prevent these preventable deaths.