Naperville Police Rank No. 2 in DUI Arrests

Just as the kicks off a late-night crackdown on impaired drivers, a survey ranks the department second in the state for arrests for driving under the influence (DUI).

The Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists (AAIM) released the results of its survey on Tuesday afternoon. Nearly 700 police departments were surveyed for the organization’s 21st annual DUI arrest survey.

The Naperville Police Department reported 671 DUI arrests in 2010, ranking it second among the reporting departments, according to the survey. The Rockford Police Department was ranked No. 1 with 727 arrests, although its arrest numbers declined 2.2 percent from the previous year.

According to the survey results, Naperville had a 15.5 percent increase in DUI arrests, roughly 4.02 arrests per officer on the 167-member force. In 2009 the department made 581 DUI arrests.

The Alliance said in a news release that the most significant deterrents to impaired driving are law enforcement and DUI arrests.

“AAIM is always particularly pleased to announce the increases in impaired driving arrests,” said AAIM board vice president and crash survivor Marti Belluschi in a news release.

“Traffic safety advocates believe that drunk drivers who are arrested are the fortunate ones. In our impaired driving prevention programs, we always remind people that if they are driving drunk they are lucky if it is a cop that stops them, rather than a tree, another car or a small child,"

The Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists is an Illinois-only citizen activist group founded in 1982 by victims of drunken driving. The Alliance’s mission revolves around prevention, victim advocacy and legislation. A grant from the Illinois Department of Transportation funded the survey.

Naperville has consistently placed in the top five for DUI arrests, according to the Alliance. In 2006,the city ranked No. 1, dropping to No. 2 in 2007 and 2008. In 2009 Naperville ranked third for DUI arrests.