Highly publicized DUI patrols netted more than a dozen drivers in the state police district that includes Muncie last week - a period that some in law enforcement regard as the start of their busy season.
State troopers arrested 14 people over the July Fourth holiday weekend in the Redkey District, which includes Delaware and four other counties.
Six of those were for driving while impaired. Sgt. Rod Russell of the Indiana State Police said the arrests were up 59 percent from the same time last year.
Russell said more sobriety checkpoints are scheduled this summer as business picks up in general for police.
"Crime does increase during the summer months," he said. "The days are longer and more people are out and about."
Jerry McKean, a Ball State criminal justice professor, agreed.
"Some studies look at the changes in average temperature and see how those correlate with crime, and they generally find the correlation," he said. "As the temperature goes up, so does crime."
Violent crime increases somewhat in July and August, McKean said.
"Lots of explanations are given," he said. "One is that the temperature of course just aggravates tempers, and there's just more conflict."
People are more likely to stay outdoors during the summer. That creates more opportunities for criminals to burglarize homes, the professor said.
"The main thing is that people should make sure if they're away from home that they secure their home and that they let their neighbors know," he said.
The summer spike arrived even as crime overall has fallen, according to the FBI's most recent statistics.
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