VENTURA, Calif. – The Ventura County District Attorney’s Office will have a specialized prosecution team to handle alcohol and drug-impaired driving cases through a $523,621 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety (OTS.)

“Impaired driving remains a significant danger to both motorists and pedestrians, particularly those drivers suspected of operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol and drugs,” said Ventura County District Attorney Erik Nasarenko. “This program allows us to focus specifically on holding individuals accountable for impaired driving to help improve community safety for everyone.”

The specialized prosecution team will also partner with the statewide Traffic Safety Resource Prosecutor Training Program to provide training to other prosecutors and investigators, as well as collaborate with law enforcement agencies on best practices for handling and managing driving under the influence (DUI) cases.

Logo

Description automatically generatedThis is the twelfth consecutive year the Ventura County District Attorney’s Office has received the funding for a specialized DUI prosecution program. Last year, the prosecution team filed 1,156 DUI cases, including 105 DUI drug cases and 12 DUI combined alcohol and drug cases.

The grant program runs through September 2024.

Funding for this program was provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.