Last weekend from Friday morning through Sunday evening, Eden Prairie officers made nine DWI arrests. Statewide nearly 370 people were arrested in Minnesota for Driving While Impaired during Labor Day weekend.  

The BAC, or Blood Alcohol Content, of the drivers pulled over by EPPD officers ranged from .08 to .19. The legal limit in Minnesota is .08. One driver had two children in the car and was also arrested for child endangerment. In another case, a car skidded off the road causing damage to the car and in a different case, an impaired driver hit another vehicle causing damage to both cars.  

Six of the arrests were made by Officer Chad Streiff, the department’s DWI officer who is funded by a grant from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety. Because Officer Streiff made three DWI arrests per shift twice during the weekend, he adds two more Hat Tricks to his name for a total of ten in his career.  

In addition to our vigilant officers, we rely on the public as an extra set of eyes and ears to notify us when they believe they see a drunk driver. In one of the cases last weekend, someone called 911 to report a drunk driver whom the caller had unsuccessfully attempted to prevent from driving. One of our officers found the car and the driver was arrested with a BAC of .16.

If you observe a possible drunk driver, please pull over or have a passenger call 911 and provide dispatch with as much information as possible including location, license plate number and the observed dangerous driving behavior.

Together we can work to keep our roadways safe.