Authorities made 43 percent more DUI-related arrests in LA County this year compared to last during the July 4 holiday weekend, among the deadliest times of the year for drunken driving.
Some 490 people were arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs across LA County during a 48-hour period from midnight Thursday to midnight Saturday, according to preliminary data released by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
During same period in 2012, authorities arrested 343 suspected drunken drivers.
California leads the country in the number of sobriety checkpoints conducted annually at a time when the state is is seeing historic low DUI death totals, according to the California Office of Traffic Safety.
“In recognition that the summer season is among the deadliest time of the year, law enforcement agencies throughout the county will be making every effort to arrest drunk drivers before another life is lost,” the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said in a press release.
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