Los Angeles DUI Thanksgiving Arrests Down

According to the California Highway Patrol, Thanksgiving DUI arrests were much lower this year in Los Angeles County.  Authorities claim that drunken driving arrests were significantly down at the start of the holiday weekend.

Wednesday night marked the start of the California Highway Patrols maximum enforcement period.  CHP officers report that 49 people were arrested for drunk driving in L.A. so far, but that this number is historically low.

CHP said that during the same 12 hour period last year, nearly 80 DUI arrests were made.  Additionally, officers say that the lower number of DUI arrests has contributed to the lack of overnight Los Angeles fatalities.

In the state of California, the numbers were not as low, but progress was made.  The CHP reports that DUI driver numbers were down more than 25% from 2007, with only 237 arrests made throughout the state versus 318 from last year.  CHP officers said that, unfortunately, there were 5 DUI related fatalities in the state of California last night. 

The CHP has jurisdiction over state highways and county roads in unincorporated areas, but does not have jurisdiction over most surface streets.

If you were arrested for DUI this Thanksgiving, click here to find a California DUI attorney!