80 DUI Arrests Across Md. In Just One Weekend
BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- Dangerously drunk. There are new concerns from state police, as troopers pull over a concerning number of drivers who haven't just been drinking a little bit--they're highly intoxicated.
Rick Ritter explains that puts everyone at greater risk.
Concerning numbers. Police nailed 80 drivers for DUI in just one weekend--most of them with a blood alcohol level more than twice the legal limit.
Drunk behind the wheel. Cell phone video shows it only takes seconds for a deadly impact.
A 2011 fatal crash rocked Montgomery County; in March, a boozing bus driver is caught trying to pick up children--incidents state police are desperate to prevent.
"Most of the people that we're coming in contact with now, it's not the people that get 1 or 2 drinks at dinner, it's people that this is what they do, this is what they like to do,"said John Sollon, SPIDRE.
Eighty DUI arrests across Maryland in just one weekend--13 are done by the state police SPIDRE unit.
One drunk driver sideswipes a trooper. A second clocks 94 miles per hour with a seven-year-old in the back seat. Another is caught driving drunk twice in just hours.
The average blood alcohol level for those arrested by the SPIDRE team was .17--that's more than twice the legal limit.
"You're probably pretty intoxicated if you're at .17," said James Patterson.
For the average man, that's seven or eight drinks. For a woman, that's five.
Frightening numbers that have drivers more cautious than ever.
"Very concerned. There are far too many accidents on the road," said one woman.
Throughout the rest of Maryland over the weekend, troopers arrested another 67 impaired drivers--four were repeat offenders.
The legal limit for impaired driving in Maryland is .08.