With drunk driving resulting in roughly 1 million arrests, 10,000 deaths and $44 billion in economic damage each year, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released an in-depth report on 2017’s Strictest & Most Lenient States on DUI.
In the interest of underscoring the financial downsides of driving drunk, WalletHub compared the penalties in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 15 key metrics, ranging from fines and minimum jail time to “ignition interlock device” requirements. Below, you can find an overview of the strictest and most lenient states, followed by some additional highlights from the report.
| Strictest States on DUI | Most Lenient States on DUI | ||||
| 1 | Arizona | 42 | Vermont | ||
| 2 | Georgia | 43 | Michigan | ||
| 3 | Alaska | 43 | Pennsylvania | ||
| 4 | Oklahoma | 45 | New Jersey | ||
| 4 | Kansas | 46 | Maryland | ||
| 6 | Nebraska | 47 | Idaho | ||
| 7 | Connecticut | 47 | North Dakota | ||
| 8 | Utah | 49 | Ohio | ||
| 9 | Delaware | 50 | District of Columbia | ||
| 10 | West Virginia | 51 | South Dakota | ||
Key Findings:
♦ Red states have tougher DUI laws than blue states, ranking 23.29 and 28.00, respectively.
♦ The average fine for a first DUI ($352) is higher than the Uber fare from Washington, DC to Philadelphia, and you could get all the way to New York with the second-DUI average ($762).
♦ Repeat offenders spend nearly three weeks longer in jail than first-time offenders, on average.
♦ 44 states (and DC) can automatically suspend your license, before any court involvement, if you’re arrested for DUI.
♦ In 44 states offenders are required to equip their vehicles with ignition interlock devices after a DUI.
For the full report and to see where your state ranks, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/dui-penalties-by-state/13549/
