Crime & Safety
Crime Briefs: Cops Bust Chatty Motorists
Drivers ticketed for texting behind the wheel; gang members sentenced.
Police cited 301 motorists for cellphone use while driving during a crackdown Tuesday, the California Highway Patrol reported.
CHP collaborated with police from , a, , UC Santa Cruz and to target drivers using cellphones without hands-free devices.
April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month, and the CHP is involved in a variety of education and enforcement programs, such as IMPACT Teen Drivers.
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During Tuesday's enforcement push, 73 additional citations were issued for other vehicle code violations, the CHP reported.
Cell Phone Texting Other CHP 187 11 45 Watsonville PD 43 0 4 Santa Cruz PD 13 0 0 Capitola PD 10 1 24 Scotts Valley PD 15 0 0 UC Santa Cruz PD 20 10
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Also Tuesday, two Watsonville brothers were sentenced for their roles in a shooting on the outskirts of town on New Years Day 2010.
Julio "Sleepy" Cabrera was sentenced to 14 years, eight months in state prison for . He had chased a man out of the establishment and opened fire, hitting a passing car. No one was hurt. Julio Cabrera pleaded guilty in January to the gun charge, gang allegations and charges he threatened a police officer.
His brother, Evaristo Cabrera, was sentenced to 270 days in and three years probation. He pleaded guilty earlier this year to charges of witness intimidation and assault, both for the benefit of the same gang as his brother.
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