Our law firm regularly handles injury cases caused by drunk drivers. In a recent blog posting regarding Missouri ‘s new DUI law, we advised in Missouri 280 people were killed and 1,140 were seriously injured by drunk drivers in 2009. Now there is new evidence showing the breadth of the drunk driving.
A survey by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration indicates that as many as 30 million people could be driving under the influence of alcohol in any given year. Additionally, an estimated 10 million people could be driving under the influence of drugs.
The study clearly indicates that intoxicated driving, whether it’s related to alcohol or illegal drugs, continues to be a serious problem. That is in spite of the fact that there have been great strides made in reducing the number of people killed every year in such accidents.
According to the survey, in the state of Missouri , between 14.7% and 16.9% of motorists in a given year were driving under the influence of alcohol. Missouri had a drunk driver rate of 18.6% between 2002 and 2005, and a rate of 14.8% between 2006 and 2009. Further, between 4.3% and 4.7% of motorists in any given year were driving under the influence of illegal drugs.
As Kansas City ‘s Injury Lawyer, I was encouraged to see that Missouri State Highway Patrol is taking extra-steps to curb drinking and driving over the holiday season. The numbers of intoxicated motorists in Missouri will increase between now and New Year’s Eve. Kansas City’s Injury Lawyer and anti-drunk driving groups like Mothers against Drunk Driving have been encouraged by the falling numbers of people killed in drunk driving accidents every year. However, as the study shows, more has to be done. This holiday season; avoid driving under the influence at all costs. Make other arrangements, call a cab, and arrange to sleep over at the party venue, or take public transportation.
