South San Francisco, CA September 25, 2017 Submitted by SSFPD 
On 09-25-17, an officer from the South San Francisco Police Department’s DART unit arrested a DUI repeat offender that was driving with a suspended license. DART is the Police Department’s DUI Apprehension and Reduction Team.
The officer was conducting routine undercover surveillance on offenders from the DUI Hot List. While patrolling the Sunshine Gardens neighborhood, the officer recognized a known offender on the DUI Hot List driving a vehicle. The driver, David Joseph Perez of South San Francisco, was subsequently stopped, arrested at the scene for driving with a suspended license, and issued a notice to appear. Perez’ vehicle was towed, impounded for 30 days, and is potentially subject to permanent forfeiture.
The South San Francisco Police Department proactively works with the Department of Motor Vehicles and the Office of Traffic Safety on the DUI Hot List program. This is a program that identifies offenders with multiple DUI convictions and/or major two-point convictions who have suspended drivers licenses. All offenders on the list are provided a notice about their convictions, told about the DUI Hot List program, and are warned not to drive.
The South San Francisco Police Department regularly disseminates the DUI Hot List along with photographs of known DUI Hot List offenders and their vehicles to all DART, traffic, and patrol officers. Throughout the year, specially-trained officers from the DART unit conduct undercover surveillance operations on DUI Hot List offenders and watch their homes or workplace. Offenders caught driving are subject to immediate arrest for driving on a suspended license and are subject to additional DMV sanctions and criminal charges.
Studies and research conducted by the DMV shows a staggering 75% of drivers who are convicted of DUI continue to drive despite having their drivers licenses suspended or revoked. Repeat DUI offenders in California are involved in 24% of fatal DUI crashes and 63% of injury DUI crashes. These statistics show why programs like the DUI Hot List are important in our efforts to reduce these numbers.
Funding for some of the undercover surveillance operations is provided by a grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration