California DUI Trends Orange County Drinking and Driving 2008 Community Forum Steven A. Bloch, Ph.D. Automobile Club of Southern California December 10, 2008

From , females aged killed and injured in AR crashes increased 3%, while males declined 4%

From , females aged killed and injured in AR crashes declined 19% while males declined 21%

From , females aged killed and injured in AR crashes increased 15%, while males increased 6%

From , females aged killed and injured in AR crashes increased 46%, while males increased 18%

Drinking and Driving Trends The problem of alcohol-related deaths and injuries for young women is even more serious when we look specifically at drivers. From , female drivers: n aged in alcohol-related fatal and injury crashes increased by 116%. The increase for males was 39%. n aged in alcohol-related fatal and injury crashes increased by 83%. The increase for males was 30%. 6

Drinking and Driving Trends DUI problems of young women are unlikely to be explained by:  their level of driver licensing From California females increased their driver licensing by 28%. Males increased theirs by 20%.  Pre-existing drinking and driving trends NIAAA study (1999) showed that nationally, from , female drivers in fatal alcohol crashes increased only 12%. Male drivers in such crashes declined 31%. 7

Drinking and Driving Trends Possible explanations:  Vehicle miles driven – likely to exceed changes in driver licensing  Cultural changes – attitudes and values  Change in drinking styles – beverages consumed 8

9 Nature and Context of the Problem: Most Problematic DUI Groups n 21 to 34 year olds  Highest fatal DUI rates (esp. males; year- olds) of any group  Highest proportion of fatal collisions that were alcohol-related  Young females have shown the biggest increases (although males still made up 78% of drivers in AR crashes in 2007)

10 Nature and Context of the Problem: Most Problematic DUI Groups n Social drinkers and first offenders  Repeat offenders comprise only 30% of those convicted of DUI nationally  NHTSA (1999) estimated that 23% of drinking drivers are problem drinkers; another study estimated that 37% of DUI offenders on probation or in jail had a drinking problem.

Nature and Context of the Problem: Most Problematic DUI Groups n Low blood alcohol content (BAC) drivers (because impairment begin at low BACs)  Impairment begins with a single drink  Most people are significantly impaired at.05%  Drivers at % are 4-10 times more likely to be in a fatal crash than at.00% BAC n Drivers arrested with particularly high BACs  Average arrest BAC in CA is.16% (8 drinks in 1hr) 11

Nature and Context of the Problem n Drugs and driving Drug-impaired fatalities and their detection have grown sharply in recent years  from 22% of all California alcohol/drug-related fatalities in 1998 to 42% in 2004 n DUI enforcement – From in California:  The decline in DUI fatalities corresponded closely to the decrease in DUI arrests (42% vs 45%) But, from :  AR fatalities increased 49%  AR fatalities/all fatalities increased 22%  DUI arrests increased 9% 12