“Hillsborough County has the highest conviction rate”
Recently obtained statistics for conviction of driving under the influence in the major counties in the Tampa Bay area. We considered Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco Counties.
We thought we would ask three questions:
First, which county has the highest conviction rate?
Second, which county has the most DUI charges in the Bay Area?
Third, which county dismissed the most DUI charges?
Which Tampa Bay Area county has the highest conviction rate?
As for which county has the highest conviction rate. In an election year, this is an important statistic. Hillsborough County has a hotly contested race for the state attorney’s office and has the highest DUI conviction rate at 79.6%. Pinellas County’s DUI conviction rate was very close at 79.3%. Pasco County brought up the rear with only a 62.1% conviction rate.
Which county has the most DUI charges in the Tampa Bay Area?
Hillsborough County had the highest number of DUI charges in 2015 with 4,111 charges. The Florida Highway Patrol had 652 charges in Hillsborough County. The Hillsborough County local police departments had 1722 and the Sheriff’s Office had 1731 .
Second in the number of bay area criminal cases for DUI was Pinellas County which had 3355 DUI charges. The total number of DUI charges for the Three Counties in this study was 8623.
In The Tampa Bay Area Which County Dismissed The Most DUI charges?
Pasco County Florida dismissed the most DUI charges. Nearly 1 in every 10 charges are dismissed. There was an average conviction rate of 77.15% for drivers charged with driving under the influence in the three counties we studied.
So on average, the odds of getting a DUI charge dismissed or reduced to a lesser charge is about one in four. We have included the raw data for you to study. That is available at this link for the Tampa Bay DUI statistics. We have also included a summary in the chart below.
What are your thoughts on conviction rates for DUI in the Tampa Bay area?
“the odds of getting a DUI charge dismissed or reduced to a lesser charge is about one in four”
“a Florida Highway Patrol trooper working in Land O’ Lakes area has made the most driving under the influence arrests for the agency in the state”
Pasco DUI Arrest Contest Winner
DUI Defense Attorney notes that Pasco DUI cops are continuing their efforts to win DUI arrest contests. Florida Highway Patrol spokesman for the highway patrol’s Tampa Bay area troop says, “Pasco County does not necessarily have a higher number of DUI drivers, but more are arrested in Pasco County . . . .” We have noticed an extraordinary number of DUI arrests in Pasco County. Trooper Ron Evans is a winning contestant in this rather serious game. We ask how can a small Florida county “win” this contest repeatedly?
One media source reports,”troopers made 942 DUI arrests in Pasco, compared to 294 in Hillsborough County.” The report also noted, “While Evans was a finalist for the award in 2010 he was bested by Trooper Michael Hollis, Jr. who also works in the Land O’ Lakes area, with 203 DUI arrests in 2009. In 2008, their colleague Terry Goswick Jr. captured the award with 190 arrests in 2009.”
“For four years in a row, a Florida Highway Patrol trooper working in Land O’ Lakes area has made the most driving under the influence arrests for the agency in the state.” Notably, the Highway Patrol has not done a press release about how many of those arrests are ultimately thrown out of court.
Pasco DUI? Call Me Toll Free to Discuss 1-877-793-9290.