ISP conducts west end emphasis

SMELTERVILLE — Several DUI and drug-related arrests were made late last week as the result of an Idaho State Police local criminal interdiction emphasis held in the Silver Valley.

Members of ISP and the Shoshone County Sheriff’s Office joined forces last Friday for a concentrated operation that focused mainly on the cities of Pinehurst, Smelterville and Kellogg.

The one-day emphasis saw law enforcement utilizing drug detection K-9s and unmarked vehicles.

ISP stated that they made 20 total contacts throughout the day, with seven of those resulting in an arrest.

The types of charges included three felony drug offenses, one felony warrant, three DUIs (two drugs and one felony alcohol), four misdemeanor drug offenses and five drug paraphernalia offenses. Several of these arrests were the result of a drug detection K-9 deployment.

SCSO Undersheriff Holly Lindsey states that Cpl. Darius Dustin’s dog in particular was responsible for locating an amount of marijuana and three amounts of methamphetamine — all on separate stops.

Cpl. Dustin, certified as a Drug Recognition Expert, also was responsible for determining if the DUI drivers were impaired because of drugs or by other means.

“Deputy Dustin was instrumental in our operation,” an ISP spokesperson said. “He was the key to our success that day.”

ISP operations such as these are common in the Silver Valley around this time of the year and can even be multi-day affairs.

For being just one day, Undersheriff Lindsey was pleased with the result of the emphasis.

“I think anytime you remove a DUI off of the roadway, you can consider that a success,” she said. “In this case, out of 20 contacts, they removed three DUIs from behind the wheel. Honestly, that kind of police work saves lives.”

ISP was also happy with the operation and greatly appreciated the assist from SCSO.

“The public should be proud of the professionalism of the SCSO by including their staff in this operation,” an ISP spokesperson said.