District Attorney Awarded Office of Traffic Safety DUI Prosecution Grant
For the sixth straight year, District Attorney Tim Ward is pleased to announce the award of a California Office of Traffic Safety Grant to help prosecute cases of driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. The $179,400 grant will continue to fund a Vertical Prosecution team through September 2023, primarily for felony DUI with injury cases, as well as attorney training. The Vertical Prosecution model allows a prosecutor to see the case through from start to finish.
In addition to funding the special prosecution team, funding will be used to develop protocols for handling cases through every step of the criminal process, provide training for prosecutors and investigators through the statewide Traffic Safety Resource Prosecutor Program (TSRP), and host quarterly regional meetings with law enforcement partners to improve DUI investigations and prosecutions.
Under the 2021 – 2022 Alcohol and Drug Impaired Driver Vertical Prosecution Program grant, 2,254 total DUI cases were filed by the Office of the District Attorney – 1,944 alcohol only, 188 drug only, and 122 combination drug and alcohol. The Vertical TCDA DUI prosecutor filed 68 cases, focusing on incidents of felony repeat offenders and DUI resulting in injury or death.
“This grant will continue to allow a senior prosecutor to guide a victim’s family through the criminal justice process, and we are grateful to the Office of Traffic Safety for recognizing our office’s efforts to bring justice for victims of this crime,” said District Attorney Tim Ward. “DUI is such a tragedy because it is entirely preventable. It pains entire communities, especially when victims are children, as we have seen too often in Tulare County. This holiday season, I urge everyone to make the right decision and not drive under the influence.”
Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Media inquiries can be directed to the Office of the District Attorney, County of Tulare Public Information Officer Stuart Anderson (559) 636-5494