Over the past half-century, public attitudes about drunk driving have changed dramatically due to pressure from groups like Mothers Against Drunk Driving. And the laws against drunk driving have become increasingly stringent over the years. In spite of this, drunk driving remains a very common offense. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are approximately 130 million drunk driving incidents each year on U.S. roads.
None of this is to say that drunk driving should be legal or decriminalized. It does pose an objective risk to all drivers, including those driving drunk. But in many places, the likelihood that someone will choose to get behind the wheel after drinking may be partially influenced by how normalized the behavior seems. People, after all, largely model their own behavior on how those around them act.
So how common is drunk driving here in Georgia? And how do we compare to other states? Earlier this year, one company issued a state-by-state ranking of DUI arrests based on CDC data. The report ranked states based on rates in 2018 (specifically, the number of arrests per 100,000 residents), and it also tracked DUI trends over time.
According to the report, Georgia was 23rd among all states in terms of its DUI arrest rates. That puts us nearly in the middle for that year. The report also shows that between 2014 and 2018, the state’s drunk driving arrest rate dropped by 32.4 percent, suggesting that the overall DUI trend is decreasing in Georgia and most of the rest of the country.
If you’ve been arrested and charged with drunk driving, these statistics will hopefully serve as a reminder that everyone is capable of making mistakes, and we don’t need to be defined by those mistakes forever. But that knowledge doesn’t solve your most immediate legal problems. For help resolving your DUI charges as favorably as possible and getting back to living your life, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney in your area.
