Drunk Driving Arrest Statistics

Even though it is a serious crime with severe penalties, drunk driving continues to be a problem throughout the United States. Measures to deter people from driving drunk continue to be utilized in the hopes that one day, this won’t be an issue anymore. Until then, we are forced as a country to come to terms with the following alarming drunk driving statistics.

Rates Of Drunk Driving Arrests

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, about 1.5 million people were arrested in a given year for driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. That means that one out of every 121 licensed drivers were arrested for drunk driving.

In every state, it is illegal to operate a motor vehicle with a blood alcohol content of .08% or higher. Yet for every 88 instances of driving, someone is arrested for operating a motor vehicle above the legal limit. Within two hours of drinking, 772 drivers will be arrested for drunk driving.

Even more shocking, the Bureau of Justice Statistics has reported that 40 percent of homicides involved the defendant drinking alcohol. For the victims, 25 percent had also been drinking alcohol at the time of the event.

DUI Accident Statistics

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that in the year 2000, about 1400 automobile accidents involving fatalities had been caused by a driver with at least one other DUI or DWI conviction. This accounts for about 8.5% of all alcohol-involved automobile accidents where a fatality has occurred.

What these statistics show is that drunk driving is a serious offense. Drivers who have been drinking alcohol are nearly 1.4 times more likely to be involved in a fatal automobile accident. Unfortunately, repeat offenders pose the greatest risk accounting for nearly one-third of all drunk driving-related arrests.