Impaired Driving – Statistics and Facts
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 30 people die each day in vehicle accidents involving impaired driving. Statistically, this equals one preventable death every 48 minutes.
The Cochran Firm-Ohio is reporting the facts concerning the problem of impaired driving and the increased risk impaired driving poses to everyone on the road. Though measures are in place across the country to help decrease drunk driving, statistics show impaired driving remains a viable threat.
National Impaired Driving Statistics
Across the country, more than 10,000 people died in 2010, in alcohol and drug related motor vehicle accidents. That same year, 1.4 million drivers were arrested for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) of drugs or alcohol. Which is only one percent of the 112 million adults who self-reported episodes of impaired driving. Two hundred and eleven of those reported fatalities were children under the age of 14 and over half of these child victims were passengers in cars being driven by impaired drivers. (https://www.cdc.gov/Motorvehiclesafety/Impaired_Driving/impaired-drv_factsheet.html)
Ohio DUI deaths on upswing While Nationwide Drunken-Driving Deaths Fall
Alcohol Related Accidents Grew In Ohio, as National Numbers Dropped
While the number of impaired driving accidents has decreased across the country, in Ohio the numbers continue to increase. In fact, according to a Columbus Dispatch report, from 2010 to 2011, the number of drunk driving arrests increased by 1,400 to 22,474 and 341 deaths were blamed on impaired driving. (https://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2011/12/14/in-ohio-dui-deaths-still-on-upswing.html)
One of the most striking statistics in the Dispatch article was that 147,000 Ohio drivers had at least three convictions for driving under the influence on their records. Nationally, the CDC reports that impaired drivers who are involved in fatal crashes are four times more likely to have prior DUI convictions than unimpaired drivers are.
In Ohio and across the nation, enhanced zero tolerance laws, active enforcement of current Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) laws, and raising the minimum legal drinking age are considerations the CDC considers effective measures to reduce drunk driving. Other initiatives include utilizing more sobriety checkpoints, and the prompt revocation of offenders driving privileges.
If You or a Loved One are a Victim of a Drunk Driver Contact The Cochran Firm Ohio
At The Cochran Firm, all of our highly-experienced attorneys are dedicated to providing quality legal representation to injured people, their families, and the ordinary citizen, just as Johnnie Cochran envisioned when he founded the firm over 40 years ago. If you or a loved one are seeking personal, dedicated and aggressive legal representation in the wake of an alcohol related highway accident, please contact The Cochran Firm today by filling out our online form, or call (513) 381-HURT.
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