Police round up 47 drunk drivers over holidays

| 03/01/2019 | 40 Comments

Cayman News Service(CNS): The Royal Cayman Islands Police Service made 47 arrests for drinking and driving during the holiday season, but just four of them were on the morning of New Year’s Day. That so few people were caught over the limit and behind the wheel after the night of celebration may be because around 1,400 people made use of the free Purple Ribbon Bus Service instead of driving home after the party. “We are grateful to the members of the public who chose to ride the Purple Ribbon Bus,” said Inspector Ian Yearwood, Head of the Traffic and Roads Policing Unit. 

“By taking advantage of the service and choosing not to drink and drive, they helped to make the roads that much safer for themselves and other road users,” he added.

The RCIPS stepped up traffic enforcement operations against drunk driving and other dangerous behaviour on New Year’s Eve, and of the four DUI arrests made, three were as a result of proactive traffic stops, while one person was arrested following a single vehicle collision. At least one person arrested had a breathalyser reading of over twice the legal limit.

“Safety on the road is always our number one concern when we conduct our traffic operations,” Inspector Yearwood said. “We are pleased that once again we were able to greet the new year with no serious injuries or road fatalities following New Year’s Eve celebrations. Our focus now turns to the rest of 2019, as we continue our proactive approach to cracking down on drunk driving, speeding and other traffic violations that threaten the safety of our roads,” he warned.

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Category: Crime, Crime Prevention, Police

Comments (40)

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  1. A says:

    Untreated alcoholism is pervasive and seemingly permissive on these islands. Too bad.

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  2. Anonymous says:

    keep order on the pierson/dunn highway! keep up good work!?make the drinks and speedsters ride bicycles in the new year…hot pink bike is good!

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  3. Anonymous says:

    Uber may be unavailable in Cayman but it looks like the app is functional and ready to go. The map and routes are all there. All it needs is some drivers. I wonder if anyone has tried to sign up as a driver. Uber used to not care about government permission but maybe that changed.

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  4. Anonymous says:

    At the end of a trip, invite the taxi driver to provide the official schedule of fares to show you what to charge. If they do not have it they cannot charge and they are limited by the schedule. Know the law to beat the lawless.

    • Anonymous says:

      If there is a fare chart, you should pay them the set fare as you enter the cab.

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      • Anonymous says:

        Big if. The rip off merchants that were gouging on New Year’s Eve do not carry a schedule, which means they have no basis to charge any fare. What works best is to get them to quote an outrageous price and then let them drive you to the destination and then ask for the chart. Keep a photocopy of the regulations in your handbag or wallet.

  5. Anonymous says:

    lets take a class action case against government for their failure regarding public transport….

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  6. Anonymous says:

    Glad they got some of them…I am no strategic police work specialist but why in the world would they do a roadblock on WBroad and you can see it from half a mile away??? I saw cars pull over, turn off, turn around etc…Same just after Hurleys, never seen so many cars going around in the roundabout. It takes no genius to place them where a driver can’t get away with all the divided 2:2 lane roads, or at least put cops aside to go after the cars that clearly see the block and change direction…

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  7. Anonymous says:

    How about initiating a driver eduction program for those that lose their drivers licence. Remediate the bad behaviour before giving them their licences back. The current system stops them from driving for a year and then throws them back their licence. If they were bad before they lost their licence ,do we expect they will be any better after a year of not driving? Time to change the system.

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  8. Anonymous says:

    AFFORDABLE PUBLIC TRANSPORT NOW!!!

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    • Anonymous says:

      reliable…

    • Anonymous says:

      With Caymanian drivers please, held to high standards but remunerated well!

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      • Anonymous says:

        Uber is cheap. Eaither do the work for the pay or don’t do it. That was such a privileged comment doing no good for our people. Taxi drivers get paid well because they price gouge, that’s why we want uber. You may not make as much but that is why it’s a side hussle. But your comment made it clear that you only want one job and refuse to work two to make a good wage. Not all of us are making it rain with cash but we don’t complain half as much as this new generation of gimme gimmes do.

      • Anonymous says:

        Those two demands may be incompatible

  9. Anonymous says:

    Imagine a restaurant that could decide to charge you whatever they felt like when you’re done eating with no receipt. And charge you extra the the other chair someone is sitting on while joining you at the table.

    There are your taxis.

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  10. Anonymous says:

    Every victim of a drunk driver is a victim of Alden The Spineless and his refusal to do the right thing when it comes to public transport simply because he does not want to lose taxi mafia votes.

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  11. Anonymous says:

    Funny that I did not see the Purple bus. Taxi drivers were not stopping and when they stop, they were charging 50/70ci for less than 3km ride, a quick and easy pick up from Calico public beach to Cayman Reef right across Wendy’s on 7MB…I decided to walk home with my empty cooler! I never drink and drive and will never feed these hungry hyenas, I mean taxi drivers! Instead of giving us realistic prices, they literally double/triple charge people on such events. I believe this is also one of the reasons why people drink and drive, their rates are absurd.

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    • Anonymous says:

      7:42 here. I saw very little of the bus. Hence I too walked.

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      • Anonymous says:

        Same here. The only thing was there were six of us – I wouldn’t have risked legging it down SMB on my own and that’s probably another reason people drive drunk.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Majority are ignorant and crooked! I drove a cab for about 2 years and was appalled at their stupidity and lack of professionalism. There was talk about introducing meters but many were against it since they’d lose on their crooked system. The taxi fare book was inaccurate and outdated so I redid it and even made suggestion that drivers used their odometers when in doubt as not all fares were right even using the book! I got so sick of these “colleagues” I gave up trying to bring light to the transport industry. It was pointless and are many things in this country, sad to say, that are dominated by backwardness and outright stupidity. My advice, if you’re gonna take a cab.. measure the distance… use google maps or one the many apps and disputes it with the driver if the price seems ridiculous. After all, the book is based on mileage and you shouldn’t be charged limousine hire prices for travelling a few km in some usually unclean cab with a driver who disobeys traffic laws and who can barely spell his own name! LoL

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  12. Anonymous says:

    Only 47? LOL, I looked in at one New Year’s Eve bash where they could have caught that many leaving the parking lot. I also went to a pre-Christmas party that was just as bad so it’s been like that over the whole holiday period. People have been getting in their cars absolutely wasted but there hasn’t been a cop in sight.

    I wonder if RCIPS would care to tell us how many traffic stops they made between Dec 14 and Jan 3, and also how many breathalyser checks they conducted – that’s the true measure of enforcement.

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  13. Anonymous says:

    Well done RCIPS and we’ll done all you people who used your heads and used the bus service. As for you 7.42pm who do you think you are?? Let me tell you something now, i’ve locked a lot better people than you up for lesser crimes than DUI. When you are in those handcuffs and flung in those cells you are treated no different than any vagrant that may walk this island, never mind how much money you have. You need to get off that high horse of yours because when you are laying on that slab in the mortuary due to being smashed up through drink driving you’ll be laying next to the lowest of the low. You are all the same in Gods eyes!!

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  14. Anonymous says:

    If the people arrested for drunk driving I hope the criminal justice system deals with those who are found to have alcoholism issues. If not they will be back on the road drunk again.

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  15. Anonymous says:

    Time for a 6 month jail term for DUIs.

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  16. Anonymous says:

    Gee, when there is a viable public transport option less people drive drunk. Common sense?

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  17. Anonymous says:

    Yes, the government should allow more taxi drivers so Flex can thrive. No, you are not ‘sticking it to the man’ by driving drunk, you are only endangering yourself and others.

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  18. Anonymous says:

    wonderfully -excellent JOB RCIP! as s native I am impressed and feel safer on the road now!?

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  19. Anonymous says:

    Bring me Uber or Flex! I ain’t riding no bus!

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  20. Anonymous says:

    Uber please. CIG… a little preemptive measures?

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    • Anonymous says:

      Taxi mafia said no.

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      • Anonymous says:

        Instead of building a dock the government should build a wing on to Northward and throw everyone who dare to drive drunk and get caught. They are endangering lives of other drivers. Drunk driving should have a mandatory prison fine- anything else is futile.

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        • Anonymous says:

          “Some guys can drink and drive. Some guys can’t. What is drunk? Is drunk going all over the road.” – Ray “Trailer Park Boys.”

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        • Anonymous says:

          Think about what you are saying here. They have to be drunk first, and then drive, and then get caught by the police. We’re talking about eliminating the entire “driving” part. Get it?

    • Anonymous says:

      who would thumb down to this????

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