Is There a Decrease in DUI or a Decrease in DUI Enforcement?

Speaking of Uber, Uber has touted its success as one reason for the drop in DUI fatalities in other states. In Miami, according to the company, its ridership peaks past midnight, when people are out on the town. “In a market like South Florida, where drunk driving has traditionally been a concern, we are proud to be able to offer a safe, reliable transportation option that is helping thousands of people to get home safely after they have been drinking,” said KasraMoshkani, Uber’s South Florida general manager.

Now to be fair, DUI-related car crashes in Miami have fallen. Last year, the department said there were 47 DUI-related crashes, down from about 100 the year before and “The crime rate is down in Miami Beach, as it is nationally. The efforts of law enforcement and MADD have helped spread awareness of drunk driving,” said Miami Beach Commissioner Michael Grieco. “But I still don’t think that correlates to such a low number of arrests.”

Some local criminal defense lawyers, and others at the Miami-Dade courthouse, point to the state attorney’s “Back on Track” program as one major reason for the decrease in DUI numbers. The program allows certain first-time DUI offenders to pay fines, complete community service and take classes to have their DUI charges reduced to reckless driving. Thousands of motorists have gone through the program since it began in 2011. Prosecutors say it generates hundreds of dollars in fines per case and some punishment for cases that were often lost when officers failed to show up for the trial. But many longtime DUI officers say the program is just too lenient according to the publication.

Local defense lawyers, who have also been hit with fewer clients, contend that many police officers have stopped making DUI arrests because Back on Track hits them in the pocketbook so there is essentially no motivation to nab drunk drivers in the Miami-Dade area. “Nobody is going to court to fight the DUIs and officers aren’t getting the overtime they used to get,” said Miami defense lawyer Michael Catalano.

The police department and union deny that court overtime plays a role in the drop; however, Miami Beach had long been one the most active agencies in busting drunk and high drivers. The department was the worst offender in a 1997 Miami Herald series, “Collars for Dollars,” that documented rampant overtime abuse on DUI cases in the county’s three largest police departments. The series led to reforms in how police overtime is doled out.