(WJHL) Tennessee saw a
total of 18,757 DUI arrests in 2021 a 3.03% increase from
2020, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI).
The TBI compiled the data
in its annual report based on numbers sent in from law
enforcement agencies across the state that are recorded in the
Tennessee Incident Based Reporting System (TIBRS).
A three-year trend
showed that despite the slight rise in DUI arrests from 2020 to
2021, county agencies charged fewer people for driving under the
influence in 2021 compared to pre-pandemic data in 2019. In
fact, there was a 4.34% drop in DUI arrests in 2021 (18,758)
compared to 2019 (19,573).
Unsurprisingly, more
DUI arrests were reported in counties that have higher
populations. While crime data from the Davidson County Sheriffs
Department was not available, the Metro Nashville Police
Department recorded the most DUI arrests out of any agency
727. The U.S. Census Bureau reported that in 2020, Nashville had
a population of 692,587 people. That is just over a single DUI
arrest per every 1,000 Nashville residents.
Knox County, on the
other hand, is home to about 67.3% of Nashvilles population.
The sheriffs office in Knox County recorded 396 DUI arrests in
2021 equating to 0.84 DUI arrests per 1,000 residents.
One Tennessee locality
Moore County Sheriffs Office reported a single DUI arrest
in 2021. According to the U.S. Census Bureau in 2020, Moore
County is home to 6,396 residents. That equates 0.15 DUI arrests
per thousand.
Of WATEs sister
station, WJHLs seven-county viewing area in Northeast
Tennessee, Hawkins County had the highest occurrence of DUI
arrests in relation to population. Data showed that there were
1.32 DUI arrests per 1,000 residents in Hawkins County a
higher prevalence than numbers seen in Metro Nashville arrests.
Unicoi County followed
closely behind Hawkins County at 1.29 DUI arrests per 1,000
residents also higher than DUI arrest ratios in Nashville.
The lowest prevalence
of DUI arrests in Northeast Tennessee was seen in Carter and
Washington counties at 0.23 and 0.24 DUI arrests per 1,000,
respectively.
Here are the top 10
counties that reported the most DUI arrests in 2021.
#10 & 9. Anderson and Loudon counties
Anderson County, located
west of Knoxville, and Loudon County, located south of
Farragut, both reported 99 DUI arrests in 2021. Anderson and
Loudon counties DUI arrests per 1,000 residents were 1.29 and
1.8, respectively.
#8 & 7. Hamilton and Robertson counties
Hamilton County, located
in the Chattanooga area, and Robertson County, located north of
Nashville near the Tennessee-Kentucky state border, both
reported 115 DUI arrests in 2021. Using population data from the
U.S. Census Bureau, it was determined that Robertson had a DUI
rate of 1.62, meaning that there are roughly 1.62 DUI arrests
for every 1,000 residents. Hamilton County saw 0.31 DUI arrests
per 1,000.
#6. Bradley County
Bradley County is in the
southeastern portion of Tennessee near Cleveland. The county
recorded 122 DUI arrests in 2021. This equates to 1.14 DUI
arrests per 1,000 residents in the county.
#5. Blount County
Blount County, located
below Knox County, reported 132 DUI arrests in 2021. This
equates to roughly one DUI arrest per 1,000 residents.
#4. Sevier County
Sevier County in East
Tennessee reported 188 DUI arrests in 2021 1.91 DUI arrests
per 1,000 people in the county.
#3. Sumner County
Sumner County in Middle
Tennessee reported 293 DUI arrests in 2021. This equates to 1.56
DUI arrests per 1,000 residents.
#2. Rutherford County
There were 347 DUI arrests
reported out of this Middle Tennessee county. That equates to
1.07 DUI arrests per 1,000.
#1. Knox County
The Knox County Sheriffs
Office reported 396 DUI arrests in 2021 more than any other
agency in Tennessee, according to available data in the TBI
report.Counties
within WATEs viewing area are highlighted in the list below,
which reveals the number of DUI arrests reported by county
agencies in 2021.
Anderson County 99 adult arrests
Bedford County 26 adult arrests
Benton County 11 adult arrests
Bledsoe County 5 adult arrests
Blount County 131 adult arrests, 1 juvenile arrest
Bradley County 122 adult arrests, 4 juvenile arrests
Campbell County 56 adult arrests
Cannon County 8 adult arrests
Carrol County 4 adult arrests
Carter County 13 adult arrests (56,452 population) (0.23 DUI
arrests per thousand)
Cheatham County 79 adult arrests
Chester County 1 adult arrest
Claiborne County 17 adult arrests
Clay County 15 adult arrests
Cocke County 74 adult arrests
Coffee County 57 adult arrests, 2 juvenile arrests
Crockett County 5 adult arrests
Cumberland County 89 adult arrests
Davidson County Data not available
Metro Nashville Police Department 727 adult arrests
Decatur County 5 adult arrests
DeKalb County 22 adult arrests
Dickson County 59 adult arrests, 1 juvenile arrest
Dyer County 5 adult arrests
Fayette County 6 adult arrests
Fentress County 14 adult arrests
Franklin County 30 adult arrests
Gibson County 29 adult arrests
Giles County 23 adult arrests
Grainger County 12 adult arrests
Greene County 60 adult arrests (69,077 population) (0.86 DUI
arrests per thousand)
Grundy County 41 adult arrests
Hamblen County 36 adult arrests
Hamilton County 115 adult arrests
Hancock County 9 adult arrests
Hardeman County 17 adult arrests
Hardin County 53 adult arrests
Hawkins County 75 adult arrests (56,735 population) (1.32 DUI
arrests per thousand)
Haywood County 6 adult arrests
Henderson County 6 adult arrests
Henry County 11 adult arrests
Hickman County 11 adult arrests
Houston County 7 adult arrests
Humphreys County 17 adult arrests
Jackson County 8 adult arrests
Jefferson County 88 adult arrests, 1 juvenile arrest
Johnson County 17 adult arrests (17,755 population) (0.95 DUI
arrests per thousand)
Knox County 396 adult arrests
Lake County 0 arrests
Lauderdale County 19 adult arrests
Lawrence County 1 adult arrest
Lewis County 0 arrests
Lincoln County 17 adult arrests
Loudon County 99 adult arrests
Macon County 31 adult arrests
Madison County 61 adult arrests
Marion County 35 adult arrests
Marshall County 2 adult arrests
Maury County 33 adult arrests
McMinn County 16 adult arrests
McNairy County 8 adult arrests
Meigs County 9 adult arrests
Metro Hartsville/Trousdale County 49 adult arrests
Monroe County 30 adult arrests
Montgomery County 103 adult arrests
Moore County 1 adult arrest
Morgan County 36 adult arrests
Obion County 11 adult arrests
Overton County 13 adult arrests
Perry County 26 adult arrests, 1 juvenile arrest
Pickett County 13 adult arrests
Polk County 18 adult arrests
Putnam County 20 adult arrests
Rhea County 37 adult arrests
Roane County 30 adult arrests, 1 juvenile arrest
Robertson County 115 adult arrests
Rutherford County 347 adult arrests (324,139)
Scott County 13 adult arrests
Sequatchie County 21 adult arrests, 1 juvenile arrest
Sevier County 188 adult arrests (98,007)
Shelby County 90 adult arrests
Smith County 30 adult arrests
Stewart County 58 adult arrests
Sullivan County 82 adult arrests (157,707 population) (0.52
DUI arrests per thousand)
Sumner County 292 adult arrests, 1 juvenile arrest (187,680)
Tipton County 24 adult arrests
Unicoi County 23 adult arrests (17,821 population) (1.29 DUI
arrests per thousand)
Union County 42 adult arrests
Van Buren County 2 adult arrests
Warren County 41 adult arrests
Washington County 31 adult arrests (128,874 population) (0.24
DUI arrests per thousand)
Wayne County 3 adult arrests
Weakley County 9 adult arrests
White County 38 adult arrests
Williamson County 92 adult arrests
Wilson County 53 adult arrests, 1 juvenile arrest