California is grappling with a creeping epidemic that has spiraled out of control: drunk driving.
The data is shocking, the consequences are deadly, and the response so far has been alarmingly inadequate.
- Since 2019, drunk driving-related deaths in California have surged by a staggering 53%, killing 1,479 mothers, fathers, friends, and children in 2022 alone. California’s increase far exceeds the national average of 33%.
- Ranking not to be proud of: 8 cities in California rank in the top ten for the highest drunk driving rates in the Nation: Sacramento, Los Angeles, San Jose, Bakersfield, Fresno, San Diego, Long Beach, and Oakland, this crisis affects us all.
- 75% of drivers with suspended licenses from prior drunk driving arrests continue to drive, often leading to tragic and preventable outcomes.
- One of our last lines of defense, the breathalyzer ignition interlock device law that physically stops convicted drunk drivers from starting a car while impaired, is set to disappear. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, drunk drivers were stopped 30,000 times in California in 2023 because of interlock devices.
I am building a California Safe Roads Coalition with survivors and victims’ rights advocates, road safety, public safety, and public health experts; to pass legislation to address the drunk driving epidemic. I hope you’ll join me in this fight. The state must act with urgency. If we do not act now, more lives will be lost. Let’s save lives with every start.
Fill out the form below, and join the California Safe Roads Coalition.