A DUI checkpoint conducted on Friday, May 3rd in Oxnard, California was held in honor of Taylor Marie Moss, a 19 year old college student who lost her life in a DUI related accident.
Officer Derek Miller of the Oxnard Police Department attended a Mothers Against Drunk Driving meeting when he heard Moss’s mother, Jacquelyn, speak of her daughter’s story. He heard about how Taylor was driving home from a Halloween party when a drunk driver by the name of Hector Ortiz, 27, drove onto the 101 freeway in through the freeway’s exit in Encino. Ortiz’s vehicle collided head-on with Taylor’s. The 2009 case landed Ortiz a 15 year prison sentence.
The story inspired Officer Miller to put a face to the most tragic of drunk driving end results. It gave him the idea to inform drivers who pass through a DUI checkpoint of Moss’s story. With the support of MADD, the Moss family, and his police department, the Oxnard Police Department held its first DUI checkpoint in honor of someone. Large posters of Taylor were displayed at the checkpoint and drivers were given a pamphlet with Taylor’s picture and story as they passed through. Family members of Taylor were also present at the checkpoint.
The funding for the checkpoint was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The Oxnard Police Department plans on conducting more DUI checkpoints in honor of other DUI victims. I would not be surprised if DUI checkpoints in other California cities follow in tow.
The Ventura County Star reported on Monday, May 4th that nine citations were issued at the checkpoint, but no DUI arrests were made.
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