Number of Borough DWI arrests climbs

The number of University students arrested for DWI in Princeton Borough has climbed to four during the first month of classes, already surpassing the "one to two" undergraduate arrests police typically expect for an entire academic year, authorities said.

But this increase has not caused Borough Police Chief Charles Davall to jump to any conclusions about trends in student drinking habits or alcohol consumption on campus.

"The number of arrests has gone up," Davall said. "Maybe it could be more people are driving under the influence or it could be that we are better at catching them."

The increase in arrests for DWI of University students is only part of a larger increase across the board in the Borough. In 2000, only 32 DWI arrests were made by Borough Police officers.

In 2001, that number more than doubled to 77 charges of DWI. At the end of August 2002 — before many University students had even returned on campus — 62 arrests had been made, outpacing the 48 charges during the same period of 2001.

Capt. Anthony Federico, public relations officer for Borough Police, echoed Davall's cautious stance. Although he is quick to note the serious, potentially fatal consequences of drinking and driving, Federico said the recent spike in student DWIs may simply be an anomaly and not necessarily the beginning of more profound shifts.

"It's too early to tell," he said. "If it continues, then I would say that there is a definite change or trend towards more of this type of stuff occurring. But if it just happens that some people were stupid and decided to drive when they were drunk, then it might just be a haphazard part of everyday life."

Despite the increase in arrests, Davall said his department has made no changes in their DWI enforcement and no concerted effort has been implemented to crack down on drunken drivers.

"It's not like we're having a campaign or anything, but we're always trying to be very vigilant out there," he said. "We're doing the same things we were out there doing a year ago."

Although the department has not introduced special efforts to combat drinking and driving, Davall has plenty of advice to offer students tempted to drive while intoxicated.

"It's simple: My advice is don't do it," he said. "The penalties are severe, the consequences are severe and, most of all, you are putting people's lives in danger."

Legal penalties for driving while intoxicated include fines of up to $400, license suspension of six months to one year and imprisonment of up to 30 days.

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Daniel Silverman, the University's chief medical officer, said in an email that this year's spike in arrests may be a normal variation in statistics. Nonetheless, he said the issue of DWI is a serious one for students at the University.

"I do believe that DWI represents a deeply concerning behavior that goes beyond the level of seriousness of uncomplicated intoxication which can harm the health of the individual, as it threatens the safety and wellbeing of other people," Silverman said.

"It's a prime example of one of the 'secondary risks' of alcohol misuse that effect the quality of life of those in proximity to the intoxicated individual."