Whistler police have issued 72 immediate roadside prohibitions (IRPs) to impaired drivers so far this year — nearly three times more than at this point in 2014.
IRPs are issued under the Motor Vehicle Act for drivers with a blood alcohol level of 50 milligrams per 100 millilitres of blood or higher, and results in a temporary license surrender.
There were 25 IRPs issued in Whistler by this point last year.
Sgt. Rob Knapton said the rise could be attributed to a number of factors.
"It can be a combination of (things)," he said. "It's not necessarily a rise in impaired driving. A lot of these IRPs are a result of members' work themselves. A vast majority of them aren't complaint-generated, it's because (police) are out stopping cars."
Knapton was unsure if there's been an increase in road checks in 2015, but said that officers are encouraged to look out for impaired drivers when they are not busy with other enforcement priorities.
"It's always been a focus that we've wanted to pursue, and it may just be that it's been more simple for (officers), or they've been taking a different approach to it," Knapton added.
Apparent domestic assault leads to charge for local man
A 28-year-old Whistler man faces assault charges after a domestic dispute with his boyfriend last week, police said.
Police responded to the report of an assault last Tuesday night, June 16, on Blackcomb Way. Officers initially arrested both men, but decided to only lay charges against one individual upon further investigation.
Mailboxes broken into, damaged in three separate incidents
A number of mailboxes have reportedly been damaged or broken into over the last week in Whistler, police said.
On Thursday, June 18, Mounties got word that several mailboxes on Sarajevo Drive had been damaged in an apparent attempt to access them.
The following day several more mailboxes were reportedly damaged — this time in Spring Creek on Tynebridge Lane.
An Alpha Lake Village resident was less lucky on Monday, when items were stolen from a mailbox that had been broken into just before 2:30 p.m.
Whistler RCMP has no suspects at this time.
Intoxicated Pemberton man found with stolen merchandise
A 22-year-old Pemberton man was arrested on two charges this week after he was reported as being in an impaired state near Whistler Olympic Plaza.
The initial report came into Whistler RCMP at 1 p.m. on Monday, June 22, when a member of the public said the man was intoxicated.
After being arrested for public intoxication, police said they discovered the man was in possession of stolen merchandise from a local business.
The suspect was held in custody for court.
Drunk woman found walking down middle of Highway 99, police say
Police are urging pedestrians to use caution after an intoxicated woman was discovered walking down the middle of Highway 99 last week.
RCMP attended to the report before 3 a.m. on Friday, June 19, when the woman was arrested and held in custody until sober.
"Obviously we don't want people to be walking on the highway," said Knapton. "There was a death a couple years ago when that happened, and we'd hate to see something like that again. We urge people to use the Valley Trail."
Australian resort worker Eleanor Reinecke, 24, was killed in January 2011 when she was struck while walking northbound along Highway 99 past the intersection at Lorimer Road.
