In California, as in all other states, drunk drivers are a scourge on the highways. They pose a significant danger to other motorists by way of car accidents, serious injury and even highway deaths. Fortunately, over the period between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve 2017, a greater number of drunk drivers were arrested than in the same period last year. Whether this indicates better enforcement or a larger number of people driving drunk, it’s a clear reminder to motorists that they should always be wary while driving.
Over the 2017 holiday season, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) arrested significantly more drunk drivers across the state than they did in 2016. According to CHP, the number of arrests increased by 22 percent between the two years. In the Bay Area, CHP arrested more than twice the number of drunk drivers this past holiday season than they did in the previous year.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that in the decade spanning 2005 to 2015, the number of highway fatalities involving drivers under the influence of alcohol or other substances increased from just over 25 percent to more than 42 percent. For drivers in the Bay Area — and across the state — this is alarming. The dangers posed by drunk drivers to other motorists appears to be on the rise.
Anyone who has been injured in a car accident that involved a drunk driver should take the steps necessary to protect their legal interests. Drunk driving is a plague on the state’s streets and highways that costs Californians multitudes of pain and dollars every year. Taking legal action, if appropriate, may be one way for victims of drunk driving accidents to seek the compensation that they need.