Naperville ranked No. 4 in the state for having the most drunk driving arrests in 2025, according to the annual survey by the Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists.
It was the second consecutive year that Naperville secured the No. 4 spot. In 2025, Naperville police made 287 DUI arrests, an 11.2% increase over the 258 arrests made in 2024.
Neighboring Aurora again took the No. 1 spot with 479 DUI arrests, a 1.3% increase over 2024’s 473 arrests. The city has been first in the Illnois survey for the past four years.
Rockford came in at No. 2 with 476 arrests, a 32.6% increase from 2024, and Springfield was No. 3 with 298 arrests, a 44% increase from 2024.
Rounding out the top 12 was Elgin (269), Bloomington (250), O’Fallon (250), Decatur (219), West Chicago (212), Joliet (210), Franklin Park (209), Lombard (207) and Champaign (204).
Due to its size, Chicago is separated into its own category and not included in the list. Chicago police made 2,980 DUI arrests in 2025, a 14.22% increase from 2,609 arrests in 2024.
Naperville Police Chief Jason Arres said he was “happy” to see the city once again achieve such a high ranking.
“One of the things I talk about all the time is how proactive our police officers are out there, and this is just more proof of how we’re doing good police work in so many different ways to keep our roadways and our community safe.”
At the same time, he also found the numbers concerning.
“You love seeing the numbers go up because it’s showing your officers out there working hard and finding drunk drivers,” he said. “But this is also concerning to you from a community standpoint. You’d love to see in an era of rideshares (and) taxis and how easily available they are that more people aren’t just making a decision to go that route.”
Of the police departments surveyed, O’Fallon saw the largest increase in arrests this year with a 64.5% jump from 152 arrests in 2024. Other departments with noticeable increases were Springfield (44%), Rockford (32.6%), Bloomington (28.2%) and Champaign (24.4%).
Naperville had a rate of 1.49 DUI arrests per officer in 2025. O’Fallon had the highest DUI arrest rate with five arrests per sworn officer.
County sheriff’s departments are included in the survey. Jumping four spots from last year, Will County took the top spot for sheriff offices with 235 arrests. Rounding out the list were Winnebago (230), McLean (203), Lake (199) and Boone (155). The DuPage County Sheriff’s Office took the No. 18 spot with 69 arrests.
Illinois State Police were also surveyed. AAIM found that state police made 3,662 arrests in 2025, a 2.6% decrease from 3,760 in 2024.
“Every arrest tells a story of officers who put themselves in harm’s way to protect our families, communities and neighbors — their courage and compassion stop tragedies before they happen and spare families a lifetime of grief,” AAIM Executive Director Rita Kreslin said in a news release.
Five Naperville police officers were recognized for making the most DUI arrests in 2025. They were Tyler Saieg with 37 arrests, Nathaniel Marquez with 27, Michael Daltrey with 22, Daniel Petro with 16 and Michelle DePompeis with 14. Saieg and Marquez were both recognized in last year’s survey as well.
Rockford police investigator Ryan Lane was this year’s top cop with 146 arrests, followed by Springfield police detective Joseph Felchner (144) and Will County Sheriff’s Deputy Steven Potete (122).
“Enforcing DUI laws is difficult and often thankless; officers face danger daily and endure heartbreaking scenes yet their work saves lives. AAIM is deeply grateful for their sacrifice and dedication,” Kreslin said in the release.
AAIM is an Illinois nonprofit dedicated to preventing deaths and injuries caused by chemically impaired or distracted drivers. The group was founded in 1982 by victims of drunk driving.
More Top Picks Best Blue Light Glasses For Teens
The organization has conducted annual surveys of Illinois police agencies for the last 36 years, analyzing the number of DUI arrests police make every year. For this year’s survey, about 700 police agencies were surveyed and 84% responded. The survey is funded by the Illinois Department of Transportation.