New Year’s Eve the Busiest Day for DUI Arrests in California
What do you do to celebrate New Year’s Eve? Do you ring in the new year by making resolutions to improve your quality of life? Do you gather at the home of a family member or friend and countdown to a midnight toast? Do you light fireworks and bang on pots and pans at 12 a.m. with your children?
Regardless of your New Year’s Eve plans, most people 21 years of age or older (and some people under that age) will likely be drinking alcohol of some sort. While this is a perfectly acceptable way to celebrate the upcoming year, sometimes celebrating can go too far and that is when it becomes a legal problem.
DUI Arrests on New Year’s Eve
If you plan to drive, you should always try to refrain from drinking or manage your alcohol intake so that you don’t drive drunk. The main reason why is because you put others in danger when you decide to drink and drive. However, you are also putting yourself at great risk of getting arrested for DUI if you drive drunk on New Year’s Eve.
While the Fourth of July is typically the deadliest day of the year in terms of DUI-related deaths, New Year’s Eve is one of the most popular in terms of DUI arrests. In fact, out of every day of the year, the most DUI arrests occur on New Year’s Eve.
On New Year’s Eve in 2014, the California Highway Patrol (CHP) reported 1,072 arrests of people who were suspected of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs.1 The number of arrests in 2015 was 920. Additionally, 27 people died due to collisions on California roads on New Year’s Eve 2015.2
DUI Checkpoints on New Year’s Eve
The high number of arrests on New Year’s Eve and the morning of New Year’s Day is no coincidence. As mentioned above, many people decide to drink in some capacity during New Year’s Eve celebrations. Police know this. That is why they set up a large amount of DUI checkpoints on the night of New Year’s Eve.
CHP refers to New Year’s Eve as a “maximum enforcement period,” which means they plan ahead to set up more DUI checkpoints and send out more patrol units during this time period. The maximum enforcement period typically starts Dec. 30 at 6 p.m. and ends at midnight on Jan. 2.
Expect to see numerous DUI checkpoints on New Year’s Eve and be sure to understand what your rights are at a DUI checkpoint and during a DUI stop. If you plan to drink, make sure you come up with a plan so that you won’t be driving under the influence of alcohol.
Contact an Experienced DUI Attorney Immediately
If you have been arrested for DUI, you are facing serious consequences that could impact you for the rest of your life. Not only do you face jail time and expensive fines, your license could also be suspended and your insurance premiums will likely skyrocket. That is why you should contact an experienced DUI lawyer immediately.
Our skilled and knowledgeable attorneys at Wallin & Klarich have been successfully defending our clients accused of DUI for more than 40 years. We understand how to help you obtain the best possible outcome in your case.
With offices in Orange County, Riverside, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Victorville, West Covina, Torrance and San Diego, our DUI defense attorneys are available to help you no matter where you work or live. Call our offices today at (877) 4-NO-JAIL or (877) 466-5245. We will get through this together.
1. [http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-chp-dui-arrests-20150104-story.html ]↩
2. [https://www.chp.ca.gov/PressReleases/Pages/CHP-Reminds-Drivers-Impaired-Driving-Can-Ruin-Holidays.aspx]↩
