Increase In DUI Arrests

Non-life threatening injuries.

The morgan county sheriff's office says the number of d-u-i arrests is on the rise.

So far this year - there have been 69 d-u-i arrests.

That's compared to 43 in all of 2019.

Waay 31's grace campbell learned why the sheriff's office thinks the number is so high.

The morgan county sheriff's office spokesman told me they've put more deputies on the road to cut down on the number of d-u-i's.

But he said people calling to report someone driving under the influence has helped them keep more impaired drivers off the road!

Mike swafford: "people don't realize how much they help when they take the second to make the call because, you know, we can't be everywhere, we can't be on every stretch of roadway."

Morgan county sheriff's office spokesman mike swafford said while the number of d-u-i arrests is going up - the number of accidents and deaths from d-u- i's isn't.

He said the department believes stress from the coronavirus is causing more people to either drink alcohol or use drugs.

Both can lead to a d-u-i arrest.

Mike swafford: "we talk about alcohol a lot but prescription medication, illegal narcotics, all fall into that category where it impairs your judgment and ability to operate that vehicle."

He said generally - the number of d-u-i's increases during holiday season.

So if you think someone may be driving under the influence, call the police.

Mike swafford: "if you see something, say something.

We'll sort out the rest.

You know, a false alarm is never going to hurt anyone, it's when it's real and we don't take those steps and that's when it costs somebody their life, there's a major accident."

In decatur, grace campbell, waay 31 news swafford said law enforcement is doing what they can to keep people safe - but it's up to you to not get behind the wheel when you shouldn't.

They also want to remind you that if you take prescription medicine, check the warning labels to make sure you are able to drive