Sonoma County District Attorney’s Office Awarded Grant from the Office of Traffic Safety for Specialized DUI Prosecution Team

Sonoma County District Attorney Carla Rodriguez has announced that as a result of her office receiving a $516,000 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS), it will be able to continue to have a specialized prosecution team that handles alcohol and drug-impaired driving cases.

“Impaired driving remains a significant danger to other people traveling on roads, particularly with drivers suspected of operating a vehicle under the influence of both alcohol and drugs,” Sonoma  County District Attorney Carla Rodriguez said. “This program allows us to focus specifically on holding individuals accountable for impaired driving and make the roads in our community safer for everyone.”

The specialized prosecution team will also partner with the statewide Traffic Safety Resource Prosecutor Training Program (TSRP) to provide training to other prosecutors and investigators, as well as collaborate with law enforcement agencies on best practices for handling and managing driving under the influence (DUI) cases.

This is the twelfth year the County District Attorney has received funding from the OTS for a specialized (DUI) prosecution program. Last year, the prosecution team filed 456 DUI cases, including 178 DUI drug cases and 39 DUI combined alcohol and drug cases.

The grant program runs through September 2024.  

Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.