New Mexico authorities plan DWI patrols, checkpoints

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico State Police will be conducting sobriety checkpoints and saturation patrols across the state through the month of October. The agency said Friday that its officers are working to bring awareness in an effort to reduce alcohol-related fatalities. According to statistics compiled by state transportation officials and the University of New Mexico, there have been a total of 237 traffic fatalities in the first eight months of the year. More than a third of those — 83 to be exact — have involved alcohol. That figure is still less than the 112 alcohol-related fatalities reported on New Mexico roads during the same period last year. As part of the patrols and checkpoints, officers will also be checking for valid driver's licenses as well as vehicle registrations and insurance.