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Cancun police send 105 to jail over weekend for impaired driving

Cancun, Q.R. — The Drive Without Alcohol Program of Cancun sent more than 100 people to jail over the weekend for failing the state’s roadside breathalyze test.

The latest stops were placed along the main streets and avenues of the city. Police report performing 376 breath tests with 105 people failing. They say of those that failed, two were Cancun taxi drivers found driving under the influence of alcohol.

One young motorcyclist, a 17-year-old male, was sent to jail for failing a sobriety test when he was found driving under the influence of cannabis. A second person, a 42-year-old driver, was also referred to the Torito for failing his sobriety test for drugs.

In a statement, Cancun police say that over the duration of the weekend, traffic officers conducted 833 interviews with motorists and 376 breath tests, which resulted in 105 people being sent to jail, including eight women and four public service drivers.

In Mexico, a driver found to be over the national Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) limit of 0.8 can be detained for a minimum of 20 hours and a maximum of 36 hours. As of 2014, drivers arrested for drunk driving more than twice in a year, or more than three times in three or more years, will have their license revoked.

While most states in Mexico abide by the national BAC limit of 0.8, some states have lower limits which include a BAC limit of 0.4 for Aguascalientes, Chiapas, Distrito Federal, Estado de México, Hidalgo, Jalisco, Michoacán, Tamaulipas, and Veracruz and 0.5 for Chihuahua.