Arizona, Georgia toughest for DUI; South Dakota most lenient

While driving under the influence of alcohol is never a good idea, getting caught in Arizona or Georgia will be much tougher on your license and your wallet.

In a recent WalletHub survey, those two states ranked the highest in a list of the states that are the most strict and the most lenient on driving under the influence, or DUI.

Arizona ranked first in penalties and second in prevention, while Georgia ranked second in penalties and 22nd in prevention. The most lenient state was South Dakota.

Source: WalletHub

To come up with their findings, WalletHub looked at both criminal penalties and prevention measures and assigned points based on specific criteria in each. For example, some of the criteria in the criminal penalties category includes minimum jail time for first and second conviction, minimum fines for first and second conviction, and additional time for high blood alcohol content, among others.

For prevention measures, WalletHub looked at criteria such as ignition interlocks, license suspension, mandatory alcohol abuse treatment and vehicle impound, among others.

Arizona’s criminal penalties are the highest in the nation, with the most minimum days in jail for first offense, which it tied with Georgia and Oklahoma. It doesn’t have the highest minimum jail time for second offenders – that distinction goes to West Virginia at 180 days. In fact, it doesn’t rank the strictest in any category, but its combination of laws and regulations are enough to give it enough points to rank first.

The most lenient state of South Dakota, to contrast with Arizona, had no minimum jail sentence for first or second offenses, has no license suspension, has no interlock requirement, and has no minimum fine for first or second offense.

Top 10 strictest states for DUI:

  1. Arizona
  2. Georgia
  3. Alaska
  4. Oklahoma
  5. Nebraska
  6. Kansas
  7. Connecticut
  8. Utah
  9. West Virginia
  10. Texas

And here are the most lenient:

  1. South Dakota
  2. District of Columbia
  3. North Dakota
  4. Pennsylvania
  5. Ohio
  6. Vermont
  7. Maryland
  8. New Jersey
  9. Michigan
  10. Idaho

Check out the infographic below for more information, or visit WalletHub for the full survey results.


DUI Enforcement Infographic

Source: WalletHub

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