Police crackdown causes increase in drunken driving arrests

A month before East Lansing police Chief Tom Wibert’s May 2005 appointment, he stood at the scene of a fatal accident on Grand River Avenue and vowed to take on drunken drivers.

Wibert

About three years later, the East Lansing Police Department’s crackdown on drunken driving has led to a nearly 30 percent increase in the number of annual drunken driving arrests. There were 357 arrests in 2004 and 462 arrests in 2007.

“This guy didn’t have a chance,” Wibert said about the 2005 accident. “Looking at the horrific scene and thinking, ‘I’m in a position to do something about this,’ I just made a decision right then and there.”

Okemos resident John Allen Hawkins, 46, was driving to work early on the morning after St. Patrick’s Day when he was hit head-on and killed by a drunken driver traveling about 80 mph who wasn’t using headlights.

The other driver, then-19-year-old Alexander Hamil of Marshall, was convicted of second-degree murder and sentenced to eight to 20 years in prison in July 2005.

“One of the best things you can do to ensure safety is to arrest a drunk driver,” Wibert said.

The effort to keep drunken drivers off city roads has resulted in a 17-year high in arrests.

“Eighty-one percent of MSU students choose to use a designated driver,” he said. “Our goal is not to end drinking and partying in East Lansing … people are more likely to come downtown and enjoy themselves if they don’t have to worry about some bozo running into them.”

MSU police Sgt. Florene McGlothian-Taylor said although the university doesn’t specifically focus on drunken driving, it is a priority.

“We’re proactive in our patrolling to make certain the streets are safe from intoxicated drivers,” she said. “Our officers make consistent arrests.”

MSU police issued 117 drunken driving citations in 2005, when records were last released. The department cited 144 drivers in 2004, which amounts to an 18 percent decrease between the two years.

Wibert said drunken driving is a major concern in East Lansing because of the bars and nightlife.

And finance sophomore Mohnish Das said many students he knows think drunken driving isn’t a big deal.

“There’s a general apathetic attitude toward it,” he said.

For Das, the negative consequences have had a personal impact. The father of one of Das’ childhood friends and another friend both died in accidents involving drunken drivers.

Because of his experience, Das said he refuses to let his friends drive drunk.

“It’s a personal issue for me,” he said. “If a friend of mine is thinking they’re going to drive, I’d be happy to pay for a cab for them.”