DUI checkpoint slated for Friday night

Costa Mesa police will conduct a DUI checkpoint Friday night on 17th Street.

From 6 to 11 p.m., police will be stationed at 17th Street and Raymond Avenue, stopping drivers to see if they’re under the influence of drugs or alcohol or have a valid driver’s license.

Police consider checkpoints an educational tool, rather than enforcement tool for the public.

Costa Mesa is ranked 20th on the list of California cities with the most DUIs, police said. In the past three years, seven people have been killed in Costa Mesa in DUI crashes and another 328 people have been injured.

In all, police have arrested more than 3,800 people in Costa Mesa on suspicion of driving under the influence since 2008.

—Joseph Serna