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DUI Dangers in Kern County

Jul 13, 2024

Officials are becoming increasingly concerned at the continued large number of traffic accidents related to alcohol and drugs that are taking place in Kern County.

To date, this year almost 500 DUI crashes already have occurred in the county, resulting in 10 deaths and 267 injuries.

The disturbing number of DUIs, however, is not new for Kern County.

Figures recently released by the California Highway Patrol show that almost 6,000 crashes involving driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs have taken place during the five years from 2019 to this year in the county.

In those incidents a total of 263 people died and 3,538 suffered injuries over the five years.

A breakdown of the figures for each year shows that the numbers have been at unusually high levels over all of the last five years, with some years higher than others.

In 2019 a total of 35 people died in DUIs during the year. The oldest victim was 66 and the youngest 13.
In 2020 the number of deaths rose to 62. The oldest victim in that year was 84, with the youngest being 17.
In 2021 the number of deaths was the same at 62. In that year the oldest victim was 85 and the youngest was five.
In 2022 the number dropped to 47, but that was still significantly higher than in 2019. The age of the youngest who died was a little under one year old. The oldest victim was 70.
Last year the total number of deaths was the same at 47. In that year the oldest person who died was 68, with the youngest being 15.
Of the 10 who have died so far this year the oldest was 59 and the youngest was five.

The number of deaths from DUIs over the rest of this year is expected again to be concerning. Authorities point out that the figures tend to spike during the holiday seasons.

The impact of the DUIs on the community do not stop at casualties. Arrests, too, have been high. In addition, as a result, many court hearings have been held. Driver’s licenses have been suspended or revoked in many of the cases.

The statistics released by the California Highway Patrol lists the arrests that have been made as well as whether the arrests were alcohol or drug related.

Here, the breakdown shows that in this year alone through June 28, 208 people have been arrested. Forty of those arrests were related to drugs and 168 were related to alcohol.

For the five years starting in 2019 a total of 3,254 arrests have been made. Of that total, 758 were related to drugs and 2,496 were related to the consumption of alcohol.

When it comes to the city of Bakersfield itself, the CHP said 184 DUI arrests have been made up to June 28 this year. Of those, 39 were related to drugs and 145 to alcohol.

For the last five years in Bakersfield, 3,070 DUI arrests have been made, of which 735 were related to drugs and 2,335 were related to alcohol.

In 2022, 4,488 people died on California roads. Speed, driving under the influence and distracted driving cause the majority of those deaths. In the past, authorities in Kern County have pleaded with residents to refrain from driving under the influence of alcohol, under the influence of marijuana, and under the influence of drugs.

They have warned they will continue to prosecute offenders vigorously. They continue to do so. The numbers continue to rise, however, and this year so far looks like it’s headed in the same direction as has been experienced over the last five years.