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In Illinois in 2004:
- 604 people were killed in alcohol-related crashes, which was 44 percent of the 1,356 total crash fatalities.
- More than 50,147 DUI arrests were recorded by the Secretary of State's office.
- 92 percent of all drivers arrested for DUI, who were eligible, lost their driving privileges.
- 2,694 drivers under age 21 lost their driving privileges due to "Use It & Lose It" law violations.
- 18 percent of those arrested for DUI are women, who represent 50 percent of all licensed drivers.
- Males ages 21-24 had the highest DUI arrest rate (about 28 per 1,000 licensed drivers). This rate was four times greater than that of all other drivers arrested for DUI (6 per 1,000).
- 83 percent of all drivers arrested for DUI are first offenders.
Nationally:
- Alcohol-related crash fatalities totaled 16,694 in 2004.
- Alcohol-related occupant fatalities decreased 2.4 percent from 2003 to 2004.
- Drivers with a BAC greater than .08 who were killed in crashes were 10 times as likely to have a prior conviction for driving while intoxicated.
Facts about .08:
- Illinois' .08 BAC limit was signed into law July 2, 1997. .08 is a measurement of the blood-alcohol concentration level at which drivers are considered intoxicated and, therefore, are prohibited from driving on Illinois roadways.
- All 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico have .08 BAC per se laws.
- At .08, all drivers are impaired to the point that critical driving skills are greatly diminished. Studies indicate that at a .08 BAC level, a driver's steering, braking, speed control, lane changing, gear changing and judgments of speed and distance are all significantly impaired.
- To reach .08, a 170-lb. male would have to consume four or more drinks in a one-hour period on an empty stomach. A 137-lb. female would have to consume three drinks in one hour to reach .08. A drink is considered a 12-oz beer, a 5-oz. glass of wine or a cocktail containing 1.5 ounces of 80-proof liquor.
- At .08, a driver is three times more likely to be involved in a car crash than a sober driver, and 11 times more likely to be killed in a single-vehicle crash.
- Skeptics of .08 laws suggest that repeat offenders are the “real” problem with regard to drunk driving. However, about 80 percent of alcohol-related crash fatalities are caused by drivers with no arrests for drunk driving during the previous three years.
| Profile of an Illinois Drunk Driver |
The average DUI offender is:
- male (82 percent of those arrested are men)
- age 34 (61 percent of those arrested are under age 35)
- arrested between 11 p.m. and 4 a.m. on a weekend
- caught driving with a BAC level of .16 percent
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