Kane 'No Refusal' part of overall St. Pat's anti-DUI efforts
The Kane County state's attorney's office will work with law enforcement to hold its second "No Refusal" event of the year Tuesday.
The DUI patrol the night of St. Patrick's Day is part of numerous extra patrols by law enforcement during the week.
State's Attorney Joe McMahon's office's first "No Refusal" event of the year was held on Super Bowl Sunday.
Only one person was arrested on charges of DUI during the blizzard that day and McMahon could not specify if the arrest was made as part of the special patrol.
McMahon said the main goal of a "No Refusal" is to get people to change their behavior, not necessarily make arrests.
"We want people to go out and have a good time but to make alternative transportation plans," McMahon said. "We don't go into this with any goal. To me, a perfect night is zero arrests. One arrest is too many."
In a "No Refusal" event, prosecutors fan out to local police departments and are on hand to prepare a search warrant for an on-call judge if a motorist is arrested on DUI charges and refuses a breath or chemical test to determine a blood alcohol concentration.
McMahon said the patrol will be during the evening hours Tuesday; if someone is arrested on charges of DUI during the day, prosecutors will be available to prepare a warrant.
North Aurora and Elgin are two communities that began extra DUI patrols beginning Friday and lasting into next week.
Officers also will be targeting motorists who are not wearing seat belts.
"Too often, St. Patrick's Day can be a deadly and dangerous time on our roadways because of drunken driving," North Aurora Police Chief David Summer said. "That is why starting on (Friday) and running through March 17, we will be working overtime to catch and arrest anyone who is driving drunk."
Authorities are urging people to designate a sober driver in advance, to call a cab and to serve plenty of food and nonalcoholic drinks if hosting a party.