<b>Police Drunk Driving
Checkpoint Snares Drivers</b>
A sobriety checkpoint conducted by the Arlington Police Department on Saturday, Aug. 31, resulted in 13 arrests for drunk driving, 21 arrests for driver's license violations, one arrest for public drunkenness and one arrest for possession of marijuana.
Of the 1,486 vehicles that passed through the checkpoints, 63 were pulled aside for additional observation and/or sobriety testing.
The Arlington County Sheriff's Office and the Virginia State Police assisted with checkpoint operations. The Arlington County Fire Department, Virginia Alcohol Safety Action Program, Washington Regional Alcohol Program and Mothers Against Drunk Driving provided support for the event.
During the operation, officers stopped all vehicles and asked to see drivers' licenses. Any driver suspected of operating a vehicle while under the influence of drugs or alcohol was directed to a safe area off the roadway for further observation and possible testing for intoxication.
The Arlington checkpoint was part of "Checkpoint Strikeforce", a multi-state campaign aimed at reducing alcohol-related traffic crashes. Law enforcement and transportation agencies from Virginia, the District of Columbia, Maryland, Delaware, Pennsylvania and West Virginia are participating in this enforcement effort. "Checkpoint Strikeforce" is supported by a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration grant administered (in Virginia) through the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles.
The maximum penalty in Virginia for the first conviction for driving under the influence is 12 months in jail, a $2,500 fine and a 12-month suspension of driving privileges.
<b>Rice Named to
Workforce Council</b>
Governor Mark R. Warner last week announced the appointment of Rebecca B. Rice of Arlington to the Virginia Workforce Council, serving as the healthcare representative on the council.
Rice, an Arlington resident since 1995, serves as deputy director of Colleagues in Caring: Regional Collaboratives for Nursing Workforce Development, a national study program based in Washington. The program involves 45 states, studying the nursing workforce around the country, she said, "what’s being done to match supply with demand, recruitment, work environments."
Rice has a background in nursing, having worked as a critical care and ER nurse before heading the nursing program at Norfolk State University.
In addition, she said, "I’m very active in legislative issues with nurses and nursing in the Commonwealth. I chair the Legislative Coalition of Virginia Nurses."
Rice has two children, who have followed her lead into medicine and science. Her daughter works as a nurse in Children’s Hospital in Norfolk, and her son is a biology teacher at a high school in Foxboro, Mass.
<b>Board Back in Session</b>
Arlington County Board members return from their August recess this weekend, with their first meeting since July 20. The 43-item agenda includes nine site plan amendments and nine use permits.
In addition, the Board will consider the final agreement that will give the county possession of the North Tract property. The agreement was contingent on development of the Potomac Yard properties in Arlington. When that development was approved this spring, it cleared the way for the county to take over North Tract. The agreement would give the county over 21 acres to develop as parkland, and would take over another seven acres, between the Roaches Run Waterfowl Sanctuary and the railroad tracks in a year.