Over the past couple of weeks, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) made headlines with several notable incidents, including CHP serving the roads during their Thanksgiving Maximum Enforcement Period, the Organized Retail Crime Enforcement Operations in full force for this upcoming holiday season, and CHP Border Division arrest of seven suspects, recovering over $200,000 worth of shoes. Also, a DUI suspect was arrested and a dog was recused in Santa Cruz, and a family was awarded for their life-saving actions.
CHP ‘Stuffed’ The Roads
On November 23, the CHP Oakland Area office had the honor of attending Argent Materials’ sixth Annual Turkey Drive. This commendable community event allowed officers to assist in the distribution of hundreds of turkeys and other food items to local families. The CHP’s goal is to spread a bit more joy during the holiday season by ensuring local families have additional resources during this time.
The CHP also conducted its annual Thanksgiving Maximum Enforcement Period on November 27 through December 1. During the 102-hour holiday enforcement effort, CHP officers made a total of 1,113 arrests for driving under the influence. Twenty-three people lost their lives in crashes across the state within CHP jurisdiction, and of those, six were not wearing seatbelts. Additionally, officers issued more than 850 seatbelt citations statewide.
Retail Crime Enforcement
The Governor’s Office issued a news release on October 26 announcing the upcoming operations by the CHP’s Organized Retail Crime Task Force during the holiday season. To curb retail crime during the holiday shopping season, the CHP’s ORCTF regional teams in Southern California, the Bay Area, the San Joaquin Valley, and Sacramento partner with retailers, loss prevention teams, and local law enforcement agencies. Governor Newsom also announced new data showing that the task force has made over 1,200 arrests, conducted 677 investigations, and recovered over $9.3 million of stolen items since January.
Border Division Arrests
A cargo load of Nike Jordan shoes valued at over $200,000 was stolen from a train container while stopped near Amboy, CA on November 21. The stolen merchandise was transferred to a U-Haul box truck. The following day, on November 22, the California Highway Patrol Border Division Cargo Theft Interdiction Program (CTIP) unit located the U-Haul in Anaheim, CA, along with a pickup truck linked to the theft. CTIP and patrol officers conducted enforcement stops on both vehicles. The operation resulted in seven suspects arrested, the recovery of the stolen Nike cargo, and the seizure of burglary tools used in the theft. All suspects were booked into Orange County Jail for felony grand theft of cargo.
DUI Suspect In Custody
Santa Cruz CHP officers responded to a single-vehicle collision on Highway 129 near Murphy Crossing on November 25. The incident involved a pick-up truck that struck a tree and a fence before stopping on the roadway. The driver of the vehicle suffered injuries and subsequently was detained for DUI. Officers were grateful to report that a dog in the vehicle at the time of the event survived without injuries and was safely relocated to a local shelter within Santa Cruz County.
Yuba-Sutter Award
On November 25, a six-year-old witnessed a crash that led to an overturned car in a canal in Sutter County. The six-year-old ran inside to tell her parents, who then jumped into the canal to save a 75-year-old woman who had driven off the road. Fortunately, the 75-year-old woman sustained only minor injuries.
United States Representative Douglas LaMalfa dropped off a recognition certificate to CHP’s Yuba Sutter office for the life-saving actions of six-year-old Cayleigh and her family the next day. Officers had the privilege of showing Cayleigh one of their brand-new Dodge Charger patrol vehicles. Also, her parents not only helped save the 75-year-old woman’s life earlier in week, but they also helped save the life of another person on October 13 after a wrong-way driver crashed into him on State Route 99.
