BY JACQUELINE LEE AND CAROLYN P. SMITH - News-Democrat
EAST ST. LOUIS -- Law enforcement officials made it clear to motorists early Saturday that they were not tolerating any illegal activity as they towed more than 30 cars and made about the same number of arrests at safety check points.
The St. Clair County Sheriff's Department had 25 deputies and Illinois State Police had 25 troopers participate in the operation designed to curb the crime that results from intoxicated motorists driving to the nightclubs in East St. Louis after liquor establishments in St. Louis close.
Agents from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives as well as agents from the Metropolitan Enforcement Group of Southern Illinois also joined in on the operation. Three canine units were on the scene, too.
From 12:15 a.m. to 4:15 a.m., police set up safety check points for motorist coming off the eastbound lanes of the Poplar Street and Eads bridges. They were looking for motorists who were driving under the influence, not wearing seat belts and carrying illegal guns or drugs.
Bright lights from police cars and tow trucks whisking away vehicles lit up the night.
Police confiscated open alcohol from several vehicles. Motorists who tried to turn back once they saw the sea of police cars were met with squad cars that had been strategically placed and were waiting like cats pouncing on their prey to turn them back toward the checkpoints.
The operation was held about three weeks after high ranking police officials and community activists called for East St. Louis leaders to establish a closing time for nightclubs in the city. Most liquor establishments in Missouri close at 1:30 a.m.
East St. Louis Mayor Alvin L. Parks Jr. recently said there are no plans under way to close nightclubs early.
Illinois State Police Capt. Mark Bramlett said police hope that their efforts will have a great impact on violent crimes that have been occurring in and around the East St. Louis nightclubs.
St. Clair County Sheriff's Capt. Steve Johnson said those who were arrested were taken straight to the County Jail.
Charges ranged anywhere from traffic violations of no driver's license and DUIs to outstanding warrants.
"Two people were caught with illegal firearms. One was a semiautomatic pistol and the other was an assault rifle," Johnson said.
Out of the seven or eight DUI arrests, one of them refused to take the breathalyzer test.
"We had an assistant state's attorney from the St. Clair County State's Attorney's office on scene," Johnson said. That attorney had the person taken to a hospital so blood could be drawn, Johnson said.
"It's barely 2 a.m. and we're all tied up on arrests already," Johnson said early Saturday. "Both cars (jail wagons) are full and there are arrests in the back of each squad car."
Bramlett and U.S. Marshal Don Slaznik said the suspects were from Illinois and Missouri.
"Some Illinois residents who had been in St. Louis drinking were headed back to Illinois when we stopped them," Slaznik said. "We're looking for guns. We have enough guns over here (in Illinois) already."
The officers must stop the cars at random, and not purposely single out certain vehicles, Slaznik said.
"Everything you see here is perfectly lawful and we want to be sure of it," U.S. Attorney A. Courtney Cox said.
Cox said he hopes the effort will deter intoxicated people and those carrying weapons from the city.
Contact reporter Jacqueline Lee at jlee@bnd.com or 239-2655. Contact reporter Carolyn P. Smith at csmith@bnd.com.
