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| Did Alcohol-related Arrests Decrease during Alcohol Prohibition? |
The assertion:
Also, alcohol-related
arrests decreased 50%. From Chapter
6 - Role of Tobacco and Alcohol in the Drug Legalization Debate
from "Drug
Legalization: Myths and Misconceptions" by the U.S. Department of
Justice Drug Enforcement Administration.
The Short Answer:
Alcohol-related arrests were above the pre-prohibition records by 1925.
The Longer Answer:
The following chart shows the figures for major cities from 1920-25:
Arrests for drunkenness in some of the leading
cities of the United States |
| |
1920 |
1921 |
1922 |
1923 |
1924 |
1925 |
| Boston |
21,800 |
30,987 |
37,543 |
38,988 |
39,528 |
37,944 |
| Providence |
2,567 |
3,778 |
4,830 |
5,127 |
4,819 |
4,197 |
| New York |
5,936 |
6,237 |
8,578 |
10,643 |
13,988 |
12,917 |
| Buffalo |
7,421 |
8,347 |
8,868 |
12,181 |
11,135 |
16,174 |
| Newark |
1,310 |
1,252 |
1,198 |
2,541 |
3,477 |
2,615 |
| Philadelphia |
14,313 |
21.850 |
26,299 |
45,226 |
55,766 |
58,617 |
| Pittsburgh |
9,577 |
10,371 |
16,554 |
24,651 |
25,401 |
28,568 |
| Wilmington, Del. |
295 |
498 |
577 |
707 |
1,003 |
1,011 |
| Baltimore |
1,785 |
3,258 |
4,955 |
6,235 |
6,029 |
5,887 |
| Washington |
5,415 |
6,375 |
8,368 |
8,128 |
10,854 |
11,168 |
| Richmond |
1,563 |
1,953 |
2,752 |
2,959 |
2,826 |
2,596 |
| Wilmington, N.C. |
145 |
191 |
179 |
223 |
303 |
220 |
| Charleston, S.C. |
508 |
512 |
564 |
582 |
732 |
775 |
| Jacksonville |
811 |
995 |
1,543 |
2,348 |
2,251 |
2,900 |
| Atlanta |
4,199 |
4,491 |
6,553 |
7,003 |
7,972 |
7,557 |
| Birmingham |
927 |
1,117 |
2,000 |
3,652 |
3,972 |
4,962 |
| Vicksburg |
42 |
63 |
106 |
137 |
105 |
321 |
| New Orleans |
2,399 |
7,079 |
12,511 |
10,173 |
12,788 |
14,171 |
| Galveston |
241 |
694 |
905 |
1,108 |
1,391 |
1,259 |
| Little Rock |
511 |
853 |
819 |
644 |
771 |
695 |
| St. Louis |
1,861 |
993 |
1,930 |
2,376 |
2,551 |
5,092 |
| Louisville |
1,016 |
2,495 |
2,018 |
3,812 |
4,748 |
5,229 |
| Knoxville |
------ |
------ |
2,753 |
------ |
4,456 |
3,862 |
| Cleveland |
2,991 |
5,156 |
16,817 |
18,814 |
19,271 |
23,393 |
| Cincinnati |
395 |
603 |
712 |
1,118 |
1,895 |
2.279 |
| Chicago |
32,362 |
49,762 |
64,853 |
75,900 |
86 072 |
92,888 |
| Detroit |
6,599 |
7,220 |
10,098 |
11,947 |
13,717 |
15,124 |
| Minneapolis |
2,363 |
5,243 |
7,268 |
7,289 |
7,676 |
7,435 |
| Milwaukee |
516 |
754 |
2,514 |
3,789 |
------ |
6,056 |
| Omaha |
2,640 |
3,821 |
5,242 |
4,817 |
4,480 |
5,142 |
| Des Moines |
1,364 |
1,949 |
3,533 |
4,489 |
3,032 |
2,395 |
| Seattle |
5,753 |
5,797 |
7,066 |
7,974 |
6,756 |
6,377 |
| Portland |
2,476 |
2,904 |
3,761 |
3,099 |
3,922 |
3,613 |
| Los Angeles |
3,357 |
6,559 |
9,910 |
12,839 |
10,660 |
11,290 |
| San Francisco |
1,814 |
3,847 |
7,261 |
7,738 |
7,953 |
8,069 |
| Salt Lake City |
659 |
658 |
768 |
868 |
919 |
1,086 |
| Totals |
147,931 |
186,834 |
292,206 |
350,125 |
297,147 |
411,607 |
* Merged in disorderly conduct cases.
from "Statement
by Hon. William Cabell Bruce, The National Prohibition Law, Hearings before the
Subcommittee of the Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate,
Sixty-Ninth Congress, April 5 to 24, 1926"
The following chart demonstrates the pattern of arrests for intoxication,
intoxication and disorderly conduct, and habitual drunkards in Philadelphia from
1910-1925.
| Year |
Intoxication |
Intoxication and Disorderly Conduct |
Intoxicated Drivers |
Habitual Drunkards |
Total Arrests |
| 1910 |
28,664 |
9,792 |
|
568 |
39,024 |
| 1911 |
30,455 |
10,806 |
|
466 |
41,727 |
| 1912 |
34,818 |
11,358 |
|
428 |
46,604 |
| 1913 |
39,309 |
14,723 |
|
760 |
54,792 |
| 1914 |
36,481 |
14,306 |
|
702 |
51,489 |
| 1915 |
33,186 |
10,202 |
|
633 |
44,021 |
| 1916 |
39,182 |
10,424 |
|
712 |
50,318 |
| 1917 |
33,584 |
9,456 |
|
562 |
43,602 |
| 1918 |
25,981 |
8,674 |
|
203 |
34,858 |
| 1919 |
16,819 |
6,794 |
|
127 |
23,740 |
| 1920 |
14,313 |
6,097 |
|
33 |
20,443 |
| 1921 |
21,850 |
5,232 |
494 |
33 |
27,609 |
| 1922 |
36,299 |
7,925 |
472 |
50 |
44,746 |
| 1923 |
45,226 |
8,076 |
645 |
177 |
54,124 |
| 1924 |
47,805 |
6,404 |
683 |
874 |
55,766 |
| 1925 |
51,461 |
5,522 |
820 |
814 |
58,617 |
extracted from Statement
of William S. Vare, The
National Prohibition Law, Hearings before the Subcommittee of the Committee on
the Judiciary, United States Senate, Sixty-Ninth Congress, April 5 to 24,
1926"
If you want to comment, or if you think you have some online references that
tell the story better, please send me an e-mail at cliff_schaffer@yahoo.com.
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