Police should detain each driver just long enough to ask a few brief questions and to look for signs of impairment, such as slurred speech, an odor of alcohol, and glassy, bloodshot eyes. These factors are important both for safety reasons and to reassure motorists of the official nature of the checkpoint. Adequate lighting, flashing warning lights, police vehicles, and uniformed officers should be used. Sobriety checkpoints also must be highly visible so that motorists can easily see the roadblock as they approach. As long as safety is paramount, there are no strict rules as to the timing or duration of the roadblock. Police should schedule sobriety checkpoints to ensure the safety of both drivers and officers. The timing and duration of sobriety checkpoints also is of key importance. Roadblocks should only be in operation when they can be conducted safely for all involved. Warning signs, adequate lighting, and clearly identifiable official vehicles and personnel must be employed. This requirement is designed to keep police from selecting drivers or vehicles solely on appearance or other subjective criteria.Īnother primary concern is the safety of both drivers and police. It's also important for police to use a neutral mathematical formula in determining which drivers to stop, such as every third or fifth vehicle. This requirement is especially critical to reduce the potential for random and arbitrary enforcement. Only supervisory officers should make the decision to establish the checkpoint and choose its location. The requirements for sobriety checkpoints established by the Supreme Court are intended to promote safety, and balance the rights of drivers against society's need to keep impaired drivers off the road. A New Jersey DWI defense attorney who concentrates on defending NJ DUI / DWI cases will determine whether a sobriety checkpoint was conducted according to the guidelines laid out by the Supreme Court, and whether evidence gathered there is likely to be suppressed. If police don't follow that protocol, evidence collected during a New Jersey drunk driving arrest at a sobriety checkpoint may be inadmissible in court. ![]() Supreme Court has ruled that sobriety checkpoints don't violate the constitutional ban against unreasonable search and seizure so long as police follow certain guidelines.
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