Vernon police took three drivers into custody during a weekend drunken driving enforcement operation.
On Saturday at 8:08 p.m., a vehicle driven by David Caruso, 51, of 1365 Main St., Coventry, approached a checkpoint, according to an arrest report. Police immediately noticed that Caruso was drinking a beer while operating the vehicle and he was pulled over, according to an arrest report.
Police said his driver's license was under suspension for a previous driving under the influence charge.
Police said he was charged with:
• Drinking while driving.
• Operating a motor vehicle under suspension for alcohol.
• Illegally operating a motor vehicle while under suspension.
• Operating an unregistered motor vehicle.
His bond was set at $2,500 and he is due in court on July 31, police said.
At 12:35 a.m. on Sunday, a car driven by Ryan James Fellows, 35, of 104 Glode Lane, Manchester, approached a checkpoint on Grove Street and suddenly veered onto another road, police said.
Fellows began driving the wring way on a one-way street and was apprehended by a passing officer who had perimeter duty, police said.
Fellows was charged with:
• Driving under the influence.
• Traveling the wrong way in a one-way street.
Police said he failed a series of field sobriety tests.
His bond was set at $500 with a July 30 court date, police said.
Just before Fellows was charged, 54-year-old Thomas Kelly of 14 Pinney St., Ellington, drive into the checkpoint and was suspected of being intoxicated, police said.
He was charged with DUI.
The Vernon Police Department and the Metro Traffic Services law enforcement unit conducted the sobriety checkpoints from 6 p.m. Saturday to 2 a.m. on Sunday on Route 83, Route 74, Bolton Road, South Frontage Road, Route 31 and Route 30, Vernon police said.
The checkpoint was funded through a federal Comprehensive DUI Enforcement Program grant that funds a regional effort to combat drunken driving through the use of checkpoints and roving patrols.
