I think the real issue is things other than drunk (or unlicensed/uninsured) driving coming from DUI checkpoints. If you are drunk, you get arrested. But if a cop finds something incident to the DUI stop, it should not be admissible in court. The issue is focus: when you get your license, you agree to breathalyzer testing. You don't agree to all sorts of search, etc.
YES, a drunken driving patrol should NOT be a fishing expenditure for everything else illegal. DUI pass,valid license,registration,safety inspection & insurance and you on your way. 2 minute deal,unless your drunk of course.
Entrapped in a midnight stop during Mardi Gras revelry,zero alcohol in my system, on the bike. Cop insisted on knowing "where I was coming from and where I was going to" after producing all my proper documents ? WTF
Pissed me off, I let that bastard have it full bore with both barrels open verbally. NONE of your business, time to pop a real drunk yet asshole,bored, need a box of doughnuts,you look FAT,yada,yada. Nothing dire enough to get me arrested but is was FUN badgering the shit out of him. If you really want RESPECT Officer Barney treat me likewise.
Couple of years back, fire department was selling friggin hot dogs at the New Year's stop,carnival atmosphere, what a joke.
from our local Sun Gazette newspaper about last Saturday's DUI safety patrol
DUI safety check facts:
348 motorist's stopped
12 given field sobriety tests
5 arrested on DUI charges
44 seat belt violations
77 "other violations"
121 warnings
4 marijuana arrests
PS: wife's relatives own a bar, once a DUI checkpoint is up and running, instant phone calls ping to every alcohol serving establishment in the city. he he, the Hole in the Wall bar announces the location over a Pa system.
Trapster or several other smart phone apps have the ability for advance warnings also. Ha, the kind officer will probably ask to inspect your cell phone next.
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OUR VIEW: End DUI checkpointsThe Utah Legislature is mulling over House Bill 140, which would prohibit law enforcement from setting up DUI checkpoints across the state. Pressure from law enforcement agencies and interest groups may stifle that effort, but it's the correct move.
There's no evidence that law enforcement officers, stopping drivers without cause for random checks, saves lives. According to the National Transportation Safety Administration, there's no change in alcohol-related traffic deaths between states that have the checkpoints and states that do not. A far better -- and more constitutionally correct -- solution is to have law enforcement officers conduct more saturation patrols, which involves a heavy police presence on roads with officers specifically searching for drivers using a vehicle under the influence. According to Rep. David Butterfield, R-Logan, who shepherded HB140 through the Utah House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee, saturation patrols are effective deterrences against drunken driving.
We have respect for law enforcement, that had representatives at the Legislature arguing to maintain the checkpoints. However, pulling over random motorists for DUI checks is not only a waste of time for the vast majority of drivers, it is also intrusive. It's a search that comes with no warrant and no suspicion attached. That rubs us the wrong way. As we have mentioned in these pages before, there has been a consistent increase in law enforcement excess, in all areas, in the past several years. We find it in a sinister trend and support efforts to roll back intrusive snooping on persons who should not be considered as suspicious, potential lawbreakers just because they choose to be outside.
Supporters argue that a judge has to approve a checkpoint in advance. Frankly, the fact that judges are approving these checkpoints is another reason the Legislature needs to step in. HB140 will not disallow all checkpoints. They would be retained for Amber Alerts, searches for fugitives or checks for invasive species.
Law-abiding families and individuals who go for a drive should not be inconvenienced by DUI checkpoints. It's that simple. We have those rights and we need to retain them.
