Smooth Start To California’s DUI Reduction Story
California, known more perhaps for its number of freeways and the cars on them, is also getting a lot of credit for its recent work in limiting drunken driving.
According to an article in The Sacramento Bee , which reported on the results of a newly completed study by the U.S. Department of Transportation, federal investigators find California pulling well ahead of other states like Florida, Missouri, South Carolina and Texas in terms of reducing DUI numbers on its roads. The Congress-mandated study, the first of its kind, compared the effectiveness of different states in fighting drunken driving.
California scored well in channeling its considerable resources into innovative DUI reduction programs that include targeting areas with increased impaired driving activity, the use of special drunken-driving task forces and additional online innovations.
The success of its programs has Chris Cochran, a spokesman for the California Office of Traffic Safety commenting, “Other states do come to us, to see how we do things. We all trade ideas back and forth.”
The number of drunk driving related fatalities in 2005 was 16,885 people, nationally. The fatality figures, taking into account the number of drivers and highway miles, were 0.52 deaths in California for every 100 million vehicle miles traveled, 0.73 deaths in Florida, 0.75 deaths in Missouri and 0.94 deaths in South Carolina.
Some of the other measures that help in curbing DUI and probably affect California more are bills currently in the House of Representatives. These bills recommend restricting immigrants with prior convictions from obtaining U.S. residency as well as deporting immigrants arrested on suspicion of drunk driving.
California also earned praise in the study by affording its cities more direct access to a $100-million federal grant earmarked for tackling drunk driving. As an example, the Fresno Police Department has used a federally assisted campaign to set up weekend traffic checkpoints and traffic areas with special enforcement efforts. These activities even when not leading to DUI arrests, result in more cautious driving.
Not surprisingly, California’s DUI reduction programs are resulting in its highways becoming safer with marked improvements in the fatality rates.
However, a DUI arrest for a California resident, especially considering all the new measures in place, will more than likely cause an upheaval in their lives and will require the best possible legal representation. If you have been arrested on suspicion of a DUI, call us for a free consultation.
