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South Carolina Drunk Driving Statistics

In South Carolina, after peaking in 1986, at 636 and reaching their lowest level in 1994, at 269, the actual number of alcohol-related deaths increased to pre-1986 levels.  The last two years have shown improvement, however. The percentage of traffic fatalities that were alcohol related has also increased in recent years after dropping to its lowest level of 32% in 1994. For the most recent year reported, out of all traffic fatalities, 40% involved a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 or higher, down from 55% in 1983.

Year
Fatalities
Tot
Alc-Rel
%
0.08+
%
1982
730
441
60
402
55
1983
844
509
60
463
55
1984
916
503
55
452
49
1985
951
534
56
480
50
1986
1,059
636
60
560
53
1987
1,086
577
53
495
46
1988
1,031
523
51
456
44
1989
996
473
47
403
40
1990
979
494
50
421
43
1991
890
420
47
379
43
1992
807
352
44
307
38
1993
846
305
36
273
32
1994
847
269
32
243
29
1995
881
346
39
300
34
1996
930
428
46
374
40
1997
903
362
40
330
37
1998
1,002
372
37
334
33
1999
1,065
391
37
357
34
2000
1,065
480
45
424
40
2001
1,060
582
55
513
48
2002
1,053
549
52
485
46
2003
968
488
50
423
44
2004
1,046
464
44
413
39
2005
1,093
464
42
396
36
2006
1,037
477
46
420
40

The table above shows the total number of traffic fatalities (Tot) for the South Carolina, alcohol related fatalities (Alc-Rel) and fatalities in crashes where the highest BAC in the crash was 0.08 or above (0.08+).

Drunk driving or alcohol-related fatality stats for South Carolina

It is important to note that the South Carolina drunk driving statistics, as shown above, include data from individuals who were in an alcohol-related crash, but not driving a motor vehicle at the time. The U.S. Department of Transportation defines alcohol-related deaths as "fatalities that occur in crashes where at least one driver or non-occupant (pedestrian or bicyclist) involved in the crash has a positive Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) value."

The fatality rates shown above refer to the number of people killed in all traffic accidents and, separately, in alcohol related traffic accidents, per 100 million vehicle miles traveled (VMT).

Criminal status of DUI laws in South Carolina

In South Carolina, 1st offense is a misdemeanor, 2nd offense is a class C misdemeanor, 3rd offense is a class A misdemeanor, 4th and subsequent offenses are class F felonies. Citation:§§ 16-1-10 , 16-1-20 , 16-1-90 (F), 16-1-100(A) & (C) & 56-5-2940 (2)

Sources for South Carolina drunk driving information and statistics

US Dept. of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 12/02
(2) National Conference of State Legislatures, 2004

National drunk driving statistics in the US...

These alcohol breath testers work like vending machines.