In the past, women caught driving under the influence were likely to be given a break by police officers, but not anymore. The Chicago Sun-Times’ Frank Main reports that DUI arrests of females over the past decade have spiked in Chicago, as well as throughout Illinois and the nation, even as the number of men being busted for DUI has been steadily dropping.
The increased number of DUI arrests of women likely reflects a change in attitude among police. “Each year, the laws get stricter,” said Denise Nalley, a former Cook County prosecutor who now handles DUI cases as a defense attorney.
“As a result, you don’t have cops telling women ‘be careful and drive home’ or ‘leave your car here, and have someone come get you.’ There used to be a sympathy factor for women, barring extreme circumstances.”
Nalley said the proof of this is on video taken by cameras installed on some police cars. “They cry, they’re begging,” she said of the female drivers. “But the cops are arresting them anyway.”
Nalley said one example of the new attitude was the arrest of US Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia’s daughter on a DUI in DuPage County in 2007. Ann Banaszewski didn’t get any special treatment; she was sentenced to 18 months of court supervision and ordered to undergo alcohol counseling.
“As far as enforcement, it doesn’t make a difference whether it’s a male or a female,” Chicago Police Lt. David Blanco said. “If they’re drunk, we lock them up.”
David Malham of Mothers Against Drunk Driving said there has also been a societal change, with women being more likely to take risks and engage in binge drinking. “Women now are as willing to try to drink you under the table as the guys—and boast about it,” he said.
Malham said heavy drinking by women on college campuses is worsening the problem. He said women are also less likely than men to seek treatment for substance abuse.
Even though the number of DUIs among men is decreasing, men still account for far more DUI arrests than women do. Nationwide, 126,000 women were arrested for DUI in 1998; in 2007, that number climbed to 162,000. Meanwhile, 677,000 men were busted for DUI in 1998; in 2007, the number fell to 626,000.
The same trend held in Chicago and throughout Illinois. In Chicago, 400 women were arrested for DUI in Chicago in 2001, compared with 610 in 2007. But the number of men arrested for DUI in the city fell from 6,220 to 4,440 over the same period.
In Illinois, the number of women arrested for DUI rose from 7,430 in 1998 to 9,800 in 2007. Statewide DUI arrests of men held steady at 49,000 over the same period.
Malham said he couldn’t explain why the number of DUI arrests for men is going down. “We know the tougher penalties—and risks—have lowered the incidence [of drunken driving],” he said. “I just don’t know how that translates into these numbers.”
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