Iowa law enforcement prepping for holiday

Law enforcement officers across Iowa will be increasing their enforcement over the Fourth of July weekend.

Data show that the driving dangers of the July 4 holiday vary according to where it falls during the week, said Iowa State Patrol Sgt. Nathan Ludwig.

In 2012, for instance, it fell on a Wednesday and there were no traffic fatalities in Iowa. But last year, when the holiday was on a Friday, there were seven fatalities in Iowa, three of which were alcohol-related.

Ludwig said the state patrol will have extra troopers deployed throughout the state this entire holiday weekend.

'We constantly remind people to just slow down, buckle up and watch the drinking and driving,” he said.

The state patrol is not alone. Local law enforcement agencies said they'll be increasing patrols on the roads and, in some cases, on the water, this weekend.

Johnson County Sheriff Lonny Pulkrabek said his office increases the minimum level of deputies on patrol for holiday weekends and the Fourth of July is no exception. He said regardless of when Independence Day occurs during the week, they treat the holiday as a three-day weekend.

'There are typically more people out and yes, it can potentially be busier,” Pulkrabek said. 'That doesn't mean it always is. A lot of it depends on the weather.”

Maj. Gerald Hansel with the Linn County Sheriff's Office said in addition to making sure the agency has adequate patrols to cover the county and keep an eye on various town festivals, it also will have an extra presence on the roads.

'We also have what we call traffic cars that are focused on drunk drivers,” Hansel said. 'It's not secret, we're busier on the weekends ... We anticipate we're going to be busy. We're just going to try to make sure it's the everyday, run-of-the-mill stuff.”

Many cities in Iowa also will be hosting celebrations this weekend, including Iowa City, Coralville and Cedar Rapids. For Coralville, which hosts its annual 4thFest, it means splitting officers into two areas, according to Coralville Police Lt. Deb Summers.

'Most of our activities here in Coralville revolve around S.T. Morrison Park,” Summers said. 'Basically, what we do is (officers) in the park take care of stuff in the park.”

In turn, patrol officers stay out of the festival area and respond to regular calls for service, Summers said.

Cedar Rapids public safety spokesman Greg Buelow said the police department has incident management plans for dealing with large gatherings in the city, including this weekend's Freedom Festival. Additionally, extra officers will be on the lookout for drinking and driving, Buelow said.

In addition to normal calls for service, Iowa City Police Sgt. Scott Gaarde said the police department anticipates extra calls for the holiday and the Iowa City Jazz Fest. He said extra officers will be on hand to tackle that.

'We'll have a few additional officers on duty to assist with the downtown crowds to make sure everyone has a safe and wonderful time in downtown Iowa City,” he said.