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DUI Roadblocks: The Slippery Slope

DUI Roadblocks:
The Slippery Slope

Information courtesy of Lawrence Taylor - DUIblog

In a number of previous posts I've discussed the dubious efficacy, statistics and constitutionality of DUI roadblocks, aka "sobriety checkpoints". However, I've only briefly mentioned the potential for abusing the right to set up these roadblocks -- the potential for government to use them as a pretext to violate citizen's rights.

Consider the following story from yesterday's Washington Post:

Safety Stops Draw Doubts

D.C. Police Gather Nonviolators' Data

Lisa Davis had done nothing wrong. She was wearing a seat belt, was obeying the speed limit and produced a valid driver's license when D.C. police pulled her over one recent night at a traffic safety checkpoint in a crime-plagued neighborhood.

Even so, an officer jotted down some basic information before letting her go, including her name, address and the time and location of the stop for a police database used for crime solving.

"I've got some serious constitutional issues with that," Davis said as she sat in her idling Acura at the checkpoint at Kansas Avenue and Shepherd Street NW in the Petworth neighborhood. "I feel like it's a violation of my rights. It's a slippery slope to Big Brother."

The details about Davis and the stop will be fed into the database, which is linked to a computer that includes arrest records and mug shots of criminals....

Civil liberties advocates aren't the only ones questioning the practice. The policy is sparking

Attorney Kathleen Carey

Kathleen Carey is an experienced and passionate advocate for her clients.
