Bellevue police investigate dramatic three-week DUI uptick

Bellevue Police investigate dramatic uptick in DUI's since September 15

Police say Monday's fatal crash marked Bellevue PD's 16th DUI-related crash since September 15th, with police saying the driver of the car was arrested for investigation of DUI and vehicular homicide.

BELLEVUE, Wash. - Recent video captured by Bellevue traffic cameras showed a close call in which a driver, believed to be under the influence, clipped the front of a silver van at an intersection as he went through a red light.

Monday, another disturbing crash was under investigation. This time out of the Bridle Trails neighborhood. Police say Monday's deadly crash marked Bellevue Police Department's 16th DUI-related incident since September 15, with police saying the driver of the car was arrested for investigation of DUI and vehicular homicide.

"When is it going to stop," said Drew Anderson, Bellevue Police spokesperson. "We are really waiting for folks to get clued in that driving under the influence, no matter what influence you are on, is not the safe way to commute around the city."

There were 20 DUI incidents reported last month and 16 DUI related incidents since September 15, according to Bellevue's incident dashboard.

"Fatal crashes in Washington have been on a steep rise since 2019," said Shelly Baldwin, Washington Traffic Safety Commission Director.

The Washington Traffic Safety Commission data shows that fatal crashes by year jumped by more than 100 since 2019 with alcohol and drug use playing a role in 50% of the crashes.

Baldwin says alcohol and drug use play a role in 50% of the crashes.

"It was 50% in 2019, and it’s still around 50% in 2023. It’s gone up in proportion to how the other crashes have also increased," said Shelly Baldwin, Director of Washington Traffic Safety Commission.

The most prevalent drug associated with impaired crashes was marijuana, followed by meth and fentanyl or a combination of both.

"I think there is a misperception about how dangerous it is to use marijuana and drive. There are focus groups that we’ve talked to who tell us about using marijuana after drinking because they think it makes them a better driver," said Baldwin.

Gender also plays a role. Baldwin says young men from 21 to 30 years old tend to be involved in about 70% of all fatalities year after year.

"When we look at DUI, marijuana DUI specifically, young men, or men make up 85%. So, that marijuana piece, and younger men, is even bigger than with the other crashes that we have," Baldwin.

As for solutions, Baldwin says lowering the BAC from .08 to .05 is an option under consideration, along with getting more officers out on patrol.

"The other thing that I think could have a profound impact on all crashes, and especially DUI crashes, fatal, is lowering the BAC level," said Baldwin. "We know that people are very impaired at .05, but we have this .08 level that we’ve had since 1999, and we think it’s really time to accept that drinking and driving need to be separate that impairment starts much sooner than we’ve been talking about."

Baldwin says there are some signs from data that's come in for 2024, that indicate there may be a reversal of the upward trends in the future.

"The little bit of good news is as we are looking at 2024, we are seeing preliminary data that things are starting to come down."