Cinco de Mayo DUI Arrests Down This Year
The Arizona Governor’s Office of Highway Safety has released a new report that suggests that there were fewer DUI arrests made during this year’s Cinco de Mayo weekend than in 2014. More than 2,000 officers were involved in the statewide effort to target drunk drivers over the May 5, 2015, holiday weekend, one of the times of year that traditionally see more DUIs than any other. This year, there were 460 DUI arrests statewide compared to 531 during the same period in 2014. At least 156 of these arrests were made in extreme DUI cases in which the driver’s blood alcohol content is more than .15 percent. The average BAC of those arrested this year was .16 percent. One of the arrests was that of the man who hit a family’s vehicle head-on, killing the parents and paralyzing a four-year-old child. The driver in that case had a blood alcohol level of about .24 percent. Officers also issued 194 tickets for excessive speeding as compared to 112 for last year. These tickets were for drivers traveling more than 20 miles per hour over the posted speed limit.
DUI Statistics in Arizona
The state of Arizona compiles DUI statistics yearly to help the public and law enforcement understand the scope of the issue of people driving while intoxicated. In Arizona, there are three levels of DUI charges: regular DUI, in which the driver has a blood alcohol content of .08 percent or higher; extreme DUI, in which the driver has a blood alcohol content of .15 or higher; and super extreme DUI, in which the driver has a blood alcohol content of .20 or higher. In Arizona, a driver can actually be arrested for a BAC of any level, but anything higher than a .08 percent allows a per se DUI charge in which the prosecution does not have to prove impairment. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, an organization dedicated to preventing drunk driving accidents, drunk driving deaths in Arizona have decreased by 45 percent since the state’s ignition interlock law was passed in 2007. The latest MADD statistics show that there were 219 alcohol-related deaths in 2014, a five percent decrease from the previous year. If you have been accused of DUI, it is very important that you receive support from an attorney who understands the drunk driving laws in Arizona. Call Oswalt Law Group in Phoenix today for assistance.