Minnesota Passes 11,000 DWI Arrests for 2020

I find this number to be absolutely, completely mind-blowing, but Minnesota law enforcement have already made 11,323 DWI arrests so far in 2020.

This past weekend's 242 statewide DWI busts bring the total to just over 11,000. With the year just half over, it seems as though blowing past the 20,000 DWI mark is a sure thing by the end of 2020.

MN Dept. of Public Safety

That's so crazy to me. I cannot for the life of me understand why we keep doing this. Drink, have fun, whatever -- but we need to stop getting behind the wheel. This is not going to end well.

In addition to drinking and driving arrests going through the roof, excessive speeding has become an epidemic in 2020. The Minnesota State Patrol has ticketed nearly 250 drivers so far this year for flying down our highways at more than 100 mph. That number was 93 over the same period last year. A motorist stopped in Minnesota for driving in excess of 100 mph could lose their license for six months.

Law enforcement agencies in Minnesota are in the middle of conducting a month-long speeding crackdown through July 19th. Officials are planning increased enforcement of the state's hands-free law August 1st through 8th, which will be the one-year anniversary of that law taking effect.