Drunken Driving Enforcement Varies Across Michigan

An analysis of law enforcement records found that drunken driving enforcement varies across Michigan.

The MLive.com report published Monday as part of a multi-day series says the small Kalamazoo County community of Richland has more drunken driving arrests per officer than anywhere else in the state.

Last year, the two-officer department arrested nearly 60 drunken drivers. Police Chief Jeff Mattioli says the area is home to Gull Lake, which is known for partying and boating, and there are area two state highways. Mattioli says those likely are factors.

The analysis used staffing data for more than 500 police agencies since 2003. It also used information on nearly 126,000 arrests from 2006 through last year.

It found smaller departments tended to rank higher in arrests per officer, but not always.