NAPERVILLE TOPS POLICE DEPARTMENTS IN DUI ARRESTS

Schaumburg, June 27, 2006: Since 1990, the Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists (AAIM) has conducted an annual survey of Illinois police departments to determine how many DUI arrests they make and to give recognition to the most productive departments and police officers. Over 700 police agencies were surveyed with 57% responding. The most important deterrent to drunk driving is law enforcement. AAIM not only praises these departments and individual officers, but we also want to encourage them to keep up the fight against drunk driving and its paid off.

The Naperville Police Department has finished first in the state in DUI arrests among municipal departments with 717 arrests for 2005. (Because of its size, Chicago is in its own category.) Naperville has been a perennial top-ten police department in AAIM’s DUI ranking with being the top department the last three out of four years. According to Chief David Dial, impaired driving enforcement has been and continues to be a priority for the Naperville Police Department. “We have more people killed or injured in traffic accidents than all other crimes combined and it is a significant safety issue for Naperville and we will stay on top of it,” said Chief Dial.

In 2005, Rockford was second with 660 arrests, followed by Peoria (567), Waukegan (494), Springfield (492), Carol Stream (463), Buffalo Grove (441), Hanover Park (380), Hoffman Estates (378), Schaumburg (378) and Gurnee (367).

The highest DUI arrest rate in the state among departments making at least 100 arrests was Caseyville (near East St. Louis) which had 19.6 arrests per sworn officer. The second highest rate of 13.0 was in Creve Coeur (near Peoria). Arrests per officer is an indicator of a department’s emphasis on DUI enforcement.

Chicago Police Officer John Haleas was Illinois’ Top Cop with 374 DUI arrests making his career total over 1,000 DUI arrests. AAIM also commends the life-saving efforts of Chicago Police Officers Timothy Walter with 214 arrests and Albert Krueger with 188 arrests, also Springfield Police Officer David Dyer with 180 arrests. Illinois State Police Trooper Gregory Hart arrested 214 drunk drivers and Trooper Chad R. Martinez arrested 200. “When police chiefs make it a priority to get impaired drivers off the roads, lots of arrests are made. Each of these individual officers makes more DUI arrests per year than the majority of whole police departments in Illinois. These officers deserve recognition and thanks for their diligence in promoting public safety,” said Charlene Chapman, Executive Director.

In a familiar pattern, the regions of the state with the strongest DUI enforcement are DuPage Co., which accounts for nine of the state’s top departments and Lake Co., which accounts for seven departments. The Northwest suburbs account for nine of the state’s top departments (Hanover Park – 8th, Hoffman Estates – 9th , Schaumburg – 9th, Rolling Meadows – 12th, Park Ridge - 13th, Mt. Prospect – 31st, Arlington Heights - 35th, Palatine - 37th, Niles - 38th). There are five south suburban departments in the top (Chicago Heights – 15th, Orland Park - 21st, Aurora – 34th, Palos Heights - 40th, New Lenox - 42nd).

“More DUI arrests in the Northwest and south suburbs and in Will and Winnebego Counties don’t necessarily mean there are more drunk drivers in those regions than in the rest of the state,” said Chapman. “It does indicate a more active enforcement effort targeting DUI by those departments compared to other departments.”

The biggest increases in arrests among the top departments were in Skokie where DUI arrests jumped by 107% in 2005 compared to 2004, Evanston (54%), Carpentersville (53%), Palatine (46%), Bartlett (36%), and Champaign (35%). "It’s highly unlikely that such big increases in arrests indicate corresponding increases in impaired drivers on the roads in those towns; it just means more of them were being detected and arrested last year compared to previous years,” said Chapman, who has been conducting the annual survey for AAIM since 1990.

Chicago police made more arrests in 2005 (6,896) than in 2004 (6,755), while Illinois State Police increased arrests by 10% in 2005 (9,102) compared to 2004 (8,594). The sheriff’s department reporting the most DUI arrests was in Will County (436), while Winnebago (368), LaSalle (323), Lake (294) and Cook (276) Counties round out the top five sheriff departments.

AAIM is a citizen’s activist group founded in 1982 by victims of drunk driving. Prevention, victim advocacy, and legislation encompass the mission of AAIM. The survey provides a valuable service by encouraging citizens to compare the DUI enforcement record of their local police department with that of other communities. As a result, public pressure can be applied, where needed, to make DUI enforcement a priority.

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For a full list of Illinois departments click here