The Lubbock Police Department reported that the number of DWI arrests in 2017 shifted since 2016.
- 2017: 492 arrests
- 2016: 404 arrests
- 2015: 589 arrests
Although the numbers have shifted a bit, they are still significantly lower than years past such as 2015 and 2014. McClure says it could be because people are a little more nervous to drink and drive.
“Now we have the no refusals where basically the only difference on those weekends is there’s actually a judge that’s around for those weekends that we could just send a warrant to and get a return right back and then take them to the hospital and draw their blood,” said Lubbock Police Department’s Lieutenant Leith McClure, “It’s easier to prosecute that case when there’s no refusal because you can draw blood. So the evidence is clearly there. So people know that now.”
Resources, such as Uber and Lyft, can prevent these arrests from happening at all.
“People now have an alternative. They no longer have to worry about ‘I’m going to go out to drink tonight, who can I call? Let’s get a designated driver,” said Rick Taylor who is an Uber driver in Lubbock.
But one of the most important things we can do to get this number to zero is not drink and drive. So make sure to take care of yourself, family and friends.
“Once you realized you’ve had too many, you can still call an Uber, leave your car and still Uber back the next day. And it’s a lot cheaper than paying for a DWI,” said Taylor.
“If you were to have an accident and injure someone or forbid you take someone’s life then it’s going to change, not just yours, but their families,” said McClure.
