RI One of Top States for Drugged Driving
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Rhode Island has been ranked as one of the top states for driving under the influence of illicit drugs, according to a survey released yesterday by the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
An estimated 7.8 percent of Ocean State drivers drove drugged—the highest percentage in the nation. However, the second highest state, Vermont, where the rate was 6.6 percent, was within the 1.4 percent margin of error. (See below table.)
Rhode Island didn’t do much better when it came to drunk driving—making the top ten, with 17.4 percent of drivers being under the influence of alcohol. The number one state was Wisconsin at 23.7 percent. (See below table.)
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The good news: Rhode Island has improved from three years ago, when the survey was last released. Between 2002 and 2005, 19.1 percent of drivers were drunk. But because states across the board improved, Rhode Island’s ranking actually went up from eighth worst to seventh.
However, Rhode Island was the number one state for drugged driving three years ago, when 7.5 percent of drivers fell into this category.
MADD: Our 'laws are really weak'
Gabrielle Abbate, the executive director of the state chapter of MADD, was not surprised by the survey results. “We weren’t surprised, but we are hopeful that the attempts to train law enforcement will bring down the numbers,” Abbate told GoLocalProv. She said 22 police officers from 13 departments in the state have recently been certified as Drug Recognition Experts.
Abbate said the state also needs to strengthen its drunk driving laws. “Our laws are really weak and being weak means the state doesn’t take it seriously,” she said. “That is a clear statement to anybody that wants to do that bad behavior or supports that bad behavior.”
Overall, 30 million Americans admitted to driving drunk, while 10 million said they do so under the influence of drugs, according to the survey. On the upside: a dozen states saw a decline in the drunk driving rate and in seven states, there were fewer people taking drugs and driving.