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Female DUIs Surge in Calif.

By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff

Posted Jul 12, 2009 6:56 PM CDT

(Newser) – Men aren't the only ones drinking and driving in California these days, the Sacramento Bee reports. Female DUI arrests and alcohol-related crashes are on the rise, leaving a trail of fatal car wrecks, prison sentences, and women undergoing treatment programs. "Males are still the major knuckleheads, but females for some reason seem to be trying to catch them," says a state traffic official.

Analysts are debating why the young female share of state DUI arrests spiked from 16.8% to 24.3% between 1998 and 2007—the greatest boost for any group. Some point to stricter law enforcement. Others blame the rise of female binge drinking, fruit-flavored booze drinks for women, and the influence of DUI starlets like Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan. "Now it's cool to get a DUI," says a CHP spokesman, "and that's scary." 

In this image made from video, actress Lindsay Lohan drinks champagne on New Years Eve in Capri, Italy, Monday, Dec. 31, 2007.
In this image made from video, actress Lindsay Lohan drinks champagne on New Years Eve in Capri, Italy, Monday, Dec. 31, 2007.   (AP Photo/AP Television News)
Officer Kevin Millan from the City of Miami Beach police department conducts a field sobriety test at a DUI traffic checkpoint December 15, 2006 in Miami, Florida.
Officer Kevin Millan from the City of Miami Beach police department conducts a field sobriety test at a DUI traffic checkpoint December 15, 2006 in Miami, Florida.   (Getty Images)
Officer Kevin Millan from the City of Miami Beach police department conducts a field sobriety test at a DUI traffic checkpoint December 15, 2006 in Miami, Florida.
Officer Kevin Millan from the City of Miami Beach police department conducts a field sobriety test at a DUI traffic checkpoint December 15, 2006 in Miami, Florida.   (Getty Images)
Paris Hilton arrives at a party celebrating the new mobile service Helio and benefiting Heal the Bay in West Hollywood, Calif. in this, Aug. 8, 2007, file photo.
Paris Hilton arrives at a party celebrating the new mobile service Helio and benefiting Heal the Bay in West Hollywood, Calif. in this, Aug. 8, 2007, file photo.   (AP Photo/Matt Sayles, file)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 3 comments
brawne
Jul 13, 2009 12:30 PM CDT
No. The biggest problem is women's failure to understand that they are not biologically the same as men. Women need to learn that they are ruled by hormones, which put them on unequal footing when faced with tests based on male alcohol consumption. A woman can drink three drinks on the third day of her cycle and be fine. Drink three drinks on the thirteenth day of your cycle and you'll be legally over the limit. You might feel the same but your body has not metabolized those drinks the way it would have a couple of weeks ago. Women rue their bodies at their own peril. The good thing is that you will never fly to Argentina to get laid. Better news is hit menopause and you can have four drinks. It's nature's reward for stealing your estrogen--you're biologically closer to man. Course, now you have the same heart attack risk, but you can drink.
brawne
Jul 13, 2009 5:07 AM CDT
Being female is not a blame--it's a fact. Girl's need to understand that they aren't boys. When you get gang-banged cause you're a drunk girl then you just aren't accepting reality. To not teach girls that does them no favors. What? You think the lions are going to skip the lame gazelle? Because they have evolved?
Fondue
Jul 13, 2009 4:08 AM CDT
LOL @ pic 4

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