Lane County deputies arrest seven impaired drivers over holiday weekend

Seven impaired drivers were taken off Lane County roads over the holiday weekend, in stops and crash responses that stretched from Springfield and Eugene to Junction City and rural stretches of the county. The cases ranged from an early-morning stop near River Road and Beltline Highway to a Saturday evening crash on Church Road, where people in the vehicle fled and were later found nearby.

The Lane County Sheriff’s Office said deputies arrested seven impaired drivers total during the weekend enforcement push. One of the first arrests came around 3:20 a.m. Friday near River Road and Beltline Highway, where deputies stopped 19-year-old Daniel Isaiah Santiago of Springfield after reportedly seeing signs of impairment. His car was impounded, and he was cited and released.

Later Friday, deputies were called to a single-car rollover crash in the 32100 block of Latham Road. The driver, 25-year-old Gianna Fallon Terracciano of Eugene, reportedly showed signs of intoxication and was arrested for DUII. Her vehicle was towed, and she was also cited and released.

The arrests continued into early Saturday. Around 2:15 a.m., deputies responded to the 2300 block of Irving Road after a report of an intoxicated driver. They found a vehicle being driven by 29-year-old Dennis Adrian Martinez-Rivera of Eugene, who allegedly showed signs of impairment and was arrested for DUII. His car was towed, and he too was cited and released.

Saturday evening brought another crash response, this time in the 39800 block of Church Road. Deputies said the occupants fled after the crash but were found nearby. The driver, 29-year-old Ceaira Sage Wise-Woodruff of Junction City, was arrested for DUII and reckless driving.

The arrests show how quickly routine patrols can turn into DUII cases, whether deputies are making a traffic stop, responding to a rollover, or arriving after a crash has already happened. Lane County has recently leaned on state grant-funded overtime for targeted DUII patrols because the sheriff’s office does not have a dedicated DUII traffic team. Sgt. Tim Wallace has said those deputies are often giving up weekends and family time to get impaired drivers off the road.

The crackdown also fits into a broader safety message from state and federal agencies. The Oregon Department of Transportation says its impaired driving program aims to reduce drunk and drugged driving through education, law enforcement and public outreach. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says drunk-driving deaths rise during Christmas and New Year holiday periods, and its Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign runs from Dec. 12 through Jan. 1. For Lane County, the weekend arrests were a reminder that holiday traffic risks still begin long before the holiday lights come down.