Snohomish County officers put an emphasis on DUI enforcement

SNOPHOMISH COUNTY, Wash. — DUI’s continue to climb across Washington, with fatal DUI crashes having increased more than 7% in Snohomish County.

To combat this trend, WA agencies will be increasing DUI patrols this month, starting with Snohomish County.

With events like Taste of Edmonds this weekend, the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office wants people to make a plan to get home safely. And - they’ll have more deputies on the road to catch them.

There were more traffic fatalities last year than any year since 1990, with 810 people killed in crashes. Law enforcement agencies believe these crashes are caused largely in part by drunk or high drivers. Nearly half of these 810 people killed were in a DUI-related crash.

Fatal DUI crashes statewide have increased every year since 2019, nearly double how many people were killed 10 years ago.

According to the latest data available in Snohomish County, fatal DUI crashes have increased by 7.2%, and DUI injury crashes have increased by more than 17%.

A spokesperson for the county says it appears that trend is continuing into 2024, and in the era of rideshares like Uber and Lyft, they say that increase is frustrating and unacceptable.

Next week, increased DUI patrols will hit the streets statewide through Labor Day, during what law enforcement says are some of the deadliest weeks for DUIs in the entire year.

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