The Santa Ana Police Department holds a DUI/drivers license checkpoint tonight, and Irvine cops have their own Saturday night.

Each agency also announced the locations of their operations, so plan accordingly.

The Santa Ana checkpoint is up from 8:30 p.m. through 2:30 a.m. in the area of 500 W. Warner Street.

Irvine’s operation runs Saturday at 8 p.m. to 2 a.m. in the area of Jamboree Road and Barranca Parkway.

Officers staffing the respective checkpoints will be looking for signs that motorists are unlicensed or have been drinking and/or drugging. Each department points out that they send out cops who have been specially trained to detect drug impairment, including the use of marijuana or prescription drugs. A good DUI lawyer will inform you that the potential penalties are the same whether your drug of choice was illegally obtained or came via a physician’s prescription.

Funding for the operations is provided by separate California Office of Traffic Safety grants, through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.