I am a DUI attorney, and the same things happen at the same time every year. At certain times of the I can expect an increase in calls to my office for help with a DUI citation. And I can expect it without fail. When are these times? If you said the holidays, you are correct.
Why are more people getting DUIs around the holidays? There are a couple of reasons. First, more people are driving drunk. Second, the cops are on high alert to stop and arrest people fro DUI at this time of year. Why does this happen? Let's think about it a little bit.
First, with regard to more people driving drunk around the holidays, let's just think about this time of year - Thanksgiving and Christmas. What do these two holidays, like most holidays, entail? You are correct, visiting with friends and family, sharing dinner (and drinks) and celebrating another great year about to end. There are Christmas parties galore, both with friends and with coworkers, and the drinks are usually flowing pretty heavily.
And how do you get to and from these parties? If you said a cab or designated driver you are a lot more responsible than most of the people I know. I think it might be because these parties tend to get over at a respectable hour that people think they will be okay to drive home. And they are fine until they are pulled over by that cop looking for people just like them.
Which leads me to my second reason there are more DUI arrests around the holidays - the cops are out in force looking for people. A good example of this here is any day that entails partying with friends. In Seattle there are two very big days for this - the Fourth of July, and SeaFair, a boating race where a lot of people are out on the lakes surrounding Seattle having a great time.
The cops know people are out drinking with friends at lakes, at campsites, at their homes, and don't often think about getting home when the party is over. Because, and on some level this is true, the cops want the roads to be safe for everyone, they usually increase their levels of patrol during these times to make sure people aren't driving around drunk. This is great if you are stone cold sober driving around, but any scent of alcohol on your breath, whether you are driving under the influence or not, is probably going to get you arrested (though these are the cases I as a Seattle DUI defense lawyer love to fight).
So, this year around the holidays play it safe. Take a cab wherever you are going or have someone that can drive you around. After all, you don't want to have to come and see me in a few weeks do you?
If you do find yourself in trouble around the holidays, however, don't wait until you are released from police custody to speak with a DUI attorney. Call one as soon as you can. And in the meantime don't talk to the cops, don't do field sobriety tests, and be as respectful as possible to the cops while following these two rules. It will save you some time when you actually do go out and hire someone to help you.
