A deadly drag race on a busy city street.

A bar argument that led to a man's death following surgery.

A street fight that morphed into a fatal stabbing.

Three deadly incidents in the Casper area, with victims separated by age and circumstance. They happened at different times, in three different sections of town.

The common denominator? Alcohol.

Booze continued to play a role in most newsworthy crimes in Casper this year, from a bar fight where a man lost his ear to a to a stabbing on Casper Mountain. It crept into most major court cases and caused deadly car crashes.

"People make bad decisions on any controlled substance, including alcohol," said Casper Police Chief Tom Pagel. "Our officers are constantly dealing with people who are under the influence of alcohol."

The numbers back him up.

A study commissioned by the Wyoming Association of Sheriffs and Chiefs of Police found alcohol played a role in more than 70 percent of the state's arrests. In Natrona County, that figure stood at nearly 60 percent.

The numbers might actually be higher because reporting forms aren't always filled out, said Natrona County District Attorney Michael Blonigen.

"I can state with some confidence that percentage is low," he said.

Other statistics offer further evidence of alcohol's effect on crime. In 2004, Blonigen's office prosecuted about 24 drunken driving cases a month. Four years later, that number has nearly tripled to about 67 per month.

Casper had its share of high-profile drunken driving cases this year, including that of Doug Downs, who was twice arrested for drunken driving on the same night. On the second occasion, he dragged another man for more than a mile underneath a sport utility vehicle. The dragging victim, Jeff Irene, had been lying in a parking lot with a blood-alcohol level of .374.

In September, a judge sentenced Downs to up to four years in prison.

This summer, a Bar Nunn man died while authorities said he was participating in a drag race down a Casper street. Both Corey Campbell and Donald Walsh, the man he was racing, had blood-alcohol concentrations well above the legal limit. A judge dismissed felony charges against Walsh, but prosecutors filed new charges and the case is pending.

Even with the spotlight on drunken driving offered by those cases, Casper drivers continued to hit the bottle before hitting the roads. City police are on pace for between 625 and 650 DUI arrests this year - an all-time high. In addition, they will make another 750 or so arrests for public intoxication.

"It's pretty clear that Casper has a fairly casual attitude toward drinking and overdrinking," Pagel said.

Even in crimes not directly related to alcohol, booze still played a role. Natrona County courts held two murder trials this year, and both involved defendants who'd been drinking the night of their crimes. In the most recent case, a jury found Jeffrey Lee Carter guilty of murdering Johnny Shane Moody during a drunken street fight that turned deadly.

While alcohol isn't an excuse, it does lower a person's inhibitions, Blonigen noted.

"It's not that you wouldn't do it before," he said. "But that little voice that says 'don't do it' gets muted."

Despite the numbers, Pagel said there have been some successes in 2008.

"The good news is, in taking quick action with public intoxication, I think we have seen a decrease in other misdemeanor activity," Pagel said, noting that a prompt arrest means a drunken person doesn't remain on the streets to make another bad decision.

Many local liquor dealers are working with police and the City Council to deal with the problem, the chief added. As evidence, he pointed to the Tipsy Taxi program, which will offer drinkers an inexpensive ride home from bars.

When Casper Cabs owner Tom Elliott learned that insuring the Tipsy buses would cost $3,000 a month, local liquor dealers stepped up and donated the money.

"Many of our liquor dealers are taking it seriously, and that is a good thing," Pagel said.

It remains to be seen whether that and other efforts will help reduce alcohol-related crimes. But recent alcohol-related arrest trends aren't encouraging.

"We've been tracking this for the last four years," said Ernie Johnson, who worked on the alcohol and arrests study. "It seems like it has increased each year.

"I think it is something the community leaders need to sit down and ask the question: What are these statistics telling us? … And more importantly, what can we do about them?"

Reach crime reporter Joshua Wolfson at (307) 266-0582 or at josh.wolfson@trib.com.

Year Tracker

What happened in 2008: Alcohol played a role in the majority of arrests in Casper and most of the city's high-profile crimes.

Where things stand: The city is on pace to end the year with a record number of drunken driving arrests.

Coming in 2009: Officials say collaboration between policy, city leaders and local liquor dealers offers some good news for next year.