Naperville ranks second in state DUI arrests

The Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists ranked Naperville second among Illinois police departments in DUI arrests for 2008, according to its annual survey released Monday.

Rockford led all departments with 785 DUI arrests last year. Because of its size, Chicago is in its own category.

Naperville police made 651 DUI arrests, followed by third-place Decatur with 648 arrests. Carol Stream police made 604 arrests for intoxicated driving followed by Waukegan (438), Mundelein (434), Rock Island (432) and Aurora (420). Alton (384) and Springfield (375) rounded out the top 10.

More arrests doesn't necessarily correlate to more drunk drivers in those towns compared to other communities, said AAIM executive director Charlene Chapman in a prepared statement.

"It does indicate a more active enforcement effort targeting DUI by those departments compared to other departments," Chapman said.

Founded by victims of drunken driving, AAIM promotes prevention and advocates for victims.

In arrests per officer, the village of Roscoe ranked first with 13.15. Carol Stream and Barrington police tied for second with 9.44 arrests per officer. Itasca followed with 8.68 arrests per officer.

Wheaton police logged 226 DUI arrests in 2008, up 18.3 percent over 2007. Glendale Heights' 232 arrests marked a 14.9 percent increase from 2007 while Wheeling's 249 arrests marked a 7.8 percent increase from 2007.

Among sheriff's departments, Cook County posted the highest number of DUI arrests with 490. Also in the top five, Lake County had 401 arrests, Winnebago had 394, DeKalb had 369 and McHenry had 328.