State Police Make More Than 100 Drunk Driving Arrests Over St. Patrick's Day Weekend

State Police drunk driving patrols in every Maryland county during the St. Patrick’s Day weekend led to the arrests of more than 100 people who are suspected of driving under the influence, according to a news release.

From March 14 through March 17, Maryland state troopers arrested 120 drivers during sobriety checkpoints, saturation patrols, and regular road patrols throughout the state. Authorities said the efforts were a response to the known increase in drinking and driving resulting from holiday celebrations. 

Troopers at the Berlin Barrack in Worcester County led the 22 State Police barracks with 17 DUI arrests, followed by the Golden Ring Barrack in Baltimore County with 13 arrests. The JFK Highway Barrack, where troopers patrol Interstate 95 north of Baltimore and the Rockville Barrack in Montgomery County totaled 11 arrests each. 

The full-time drunk driving enforcement team of troopers known as the State Police Impaired Driving Reduction Effort, or S.P.I.D.R.E., also made 11 DUI arrests during the period.

Troopers also dealt with several accidents in which drinking and driving played a role. On Saturday, troopers from the Frederick Barrack found a vehicle that had driven off Interstate 70 into the median. The driver was arrested for DUI, and troopers learned it was her fifth DUI arrest in the past year.

In Harford County early Sunday morning, troopers responded to a crash that occurred when an alleged drunk driver ran into the back of another vehicle on Rt. 7. Also that morning, a trooper in Charles County spotted a car traveling south in the northbound lanes of Rt. 301. The trooper found the driver was under the influence and arrested him for DUI. 

Monday night, a trooper from the North East Barrack responded a single-vehicle crash on Rt. 285 in Chesapeake City and arrested the driver for DUI. Just after midnight, troopers in Queen Anne’s County responded to a single-vehicle crash on Rt. 8 at Matapeake Middle School. The driver was arrested for DUI.