Pictured is Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon speaking at the Rotary Club meeting in Magnolia Feb. 15.

Ligon stated that with about 500,000 residents in the county the majority of crimes in the area are white collar crimes, civil litigation and vehicular crimes.

Among vehicular crimes, Ligon showed statistics outlining that motor vehicle accidents cause most deaths on the road with about 60 per year, followed by driving while intoxicated fatalities, speeding fatalities and murders. Murders average 12 per year in the county.

In 2009 the Vehicular Crimes Unit was created in order to address the significant reckless and impaired driving problem in Montgomery County, according to the MCDAO.

Through this unit came the No Refusal program in which drivers who decline to provide a sample of blood may be ordered to provide blood through a warrant.

Ligon explained that the MCDAO warns residents when the No Refusal program is occurring in an effort to stop those impaired citizens from driving.

The conviction rate of drivers who gave blood is 100 percent, Ligon added.

“We are trying to educate people, because we don’t want to arrest people,” he said.

Ligon also explained that Montgomery County has the most driving while intoxicated fatalities in the state and the average driver’s blood alcohol content level is 0.19, which is higher than the state average.

“Our drunks are drunker than the state average,” he said.

Ligon suspects that the cause of more impaired drivers in the county is the lack of visibility of police officers, because they are usually answering calls for service. Ligon is hoping to change officer visibility so drunks will not drive.

“We are trying to show visibility in the community to change people’s view,” he said.

Each year the MCDAO seizes about $300,000 in bond forfeitures when a defendant does not appear for their court date. Last year, the funds purchased a mobile DWI van. The van is a blood drawing station used during the No Refusal program.

In addition, Ligon reported that burglary in the area has increased each year. There are also thousands of thefts annually.

However, Ligon said that MCDAO is particularly thorough with aggravated crimes.

“Our priority is aggravated crimes, or people crimes,” he said.

Ligon also expressed that MCDAO is concentrating on habitual offenders. In the last two years Ligon reported that 20 habitual offenders received life sentences in Montgomery County.

The MCDAO now has a forensic crime lab located in The Woodlands. Ligon said the “nationally renowned” lab provides results in four days.

Previously, evidence was sent to DPS and results were not received for six months, according to Ligon.

“We’ve gone from six months to four days,” he said.

In the most recent news, Ligon reported that Montgomery County has hired a medical examiner and a forensic building is in the works. Montgomery County has a contract with the medical examiner’s office in Dallas. Ligon said about 500 autopsies are ordered each year, all of which had been sent to Dallas.

Photo by Cheryl Smith