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OSSINING, N.Y. Local police urged people not to drink and drive on New Year's, and to stop people who are intoxicated from driving.
"Have a plan in place if anybody's going to be drinking. Have a designated driver or the number of a taxi or a place to sleep," said Lt. Nick Alongi, a member of the county police that patrols the town of Ossining. "It's not the case that the person who's the least intoxicated should be driving, it's the person who hasn't been drinking at all."
Alongi said there will be extra police patrols out for New Year's Eve and New Year's Day, which means that if someone is driving intoxicated, they are more likely to be pulled over.
"If you're pulled over and you are intoxicated, you will be arrested. There's definitely no talking your way out of that," Alongi said.
Briarcliff police Officer Michael Zazzini said there will be extra patrols out in Briarcliff as well, and there may be a Drinking While Intoxicated checkpoint.
Both Zazzini and Alongi said that if you see someone about to drive drunk, you should try to stop them.
"You can hide their keys, get them a taxi, use friends to help," Zazzini said. "If you really care about someone, call the police. If the police come, we can at least talk them out of driving and they can enjoy the rest of the evening and not worry about going to jail or hurting someone."
There are generally a lot of house parties in Briarcliff on New Year's Eve, and police tend to get complaints about noise, Zazzini said.
Briarcliff has a lot of curvy and sometimes slippery roads, Zazzini added, which can be tricky to maneuver especially if someone is driving drunk.
"If your judgment is impaired, you could end up in one of those big trees," Zazzini said.
Taxi companies that serve the local area include BC Taxi (914-941-7080), Ossining Taxi (914-944-0090), Camps Taxi (914-941-0150), and Mega Taxi (914-944-4666).
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