West News Calif. Highway Patrol Reports Fewer DUI Arrests, Traffic Fatalities
The number of people arrested for drinking and driving during the Thanksgiving holiday fell slightly from last year, along with the number of traffic fatalities, according to the California Highway Patrol.
From 6 p.m. Wednesday to 6 a.m. Friday, 595 people were arrested for DUI offenses statewide, compared to 625 arrests for the same period in 2004, CHP officer Wayne Ziese said. In the San Francisco Bay area, 75 people were arrested and cited for DUI offenses, down from 106 last year.
Statewide, 19 people were killed in traffic accidents over the Thanksgiving holiday, compared with 21 people killed during the same period last year.
He said rainy conditions kept patrol officers on alert for accidents, which were down slightly as of Friday.
"Generally we don't see Thanksgiving as the biggest drinking holiday," compared with Christmas or the Fourth of July, Ziese said. "It's kind of a family time, but as the numbers indicate, we're still staying busy."
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