Crime & Safety
Holiday Fatalities Way Down While DUI Arrests Spike in LA County
There were three fatal crashes over the holidays in LA County compared to 13 last year. Police arrested hundreds more drivers, however.
LOS ANGELES, CA — Three people were killed on Los Angeles County highways during the 78 hours that made up this year's Christmas holiday reporting period, the California Highway Patrol said Wednesday.
The three deaths were a marked decrease from 2016, when 13 people died on the highways patrolled by the CHP during this same time span in 2016.
Statewide, the death total was also down. This year there were 27 people killed on roads patrolled by the CHP as opposed to 36 in 2016, the CHP reported Wednesday.
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On the minus side, arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs was up almost 300 from last year. This year's arrests totaled 917 as opposed to 621 during this same 78-hour period in 2016, the CHP reported.
The reporting period began at 6:01 p.m. Friday and concluded Monday at 11:59 p.m. Monday.
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Figures recorded for Orange County in the first 60 hours were 39 arrests this year compared with 24 in 2016. Fatalities were up, with two reported in 2017 compared with none the previous year.
City News Service; Photo: Shutterstock
