Broken Arrow Man Charged With Sixth DUI

Tuesday, December 19th 2017, 2:54 pm

By: News On 6

A man is in jail after being charged with his sixth DUI.

Joshua Whitaker, 32, was arrested for a DUI hit-and-run that left a woman seriously injured in August.

Whitaker’s first DUI conviction came in Creek County in 2009, then more came in 2011, 2013, 2014, 2016. His sixth came in August 2017.

"Statistics tell us the average person drives drunk 80 times before they get their first DUI. So, to get six DUIs, just if we're rolling averages only, you'd have to drive drunk at least 480 times to get arrested six times," said Lieutenant Erik Smoot with ABLE.

Prosecutors charged Whitaker in August for a hit-and-run where police said he crashed, breaking a woman’s leg. The Tulsa County Sheriff's Office arrested him for that case Monday.

"This time he injured somebody, but next time he could kill somebody. And the next time, it could be tonight. You just don't know," Smoot said.

Smoot said to be extra careful on the road this time of the year because, typically, 35 percent of fatal crashes are alcohol-related, but, during the holiday season, that jumps up to 40 percent.

"You've got to make a good choice. No matter what it is, you don't want to ruin your holiday or someone else’s by going to jail," Smoot said.

Whitaker is also facing charges of driving with a revoked license and having no insurance.