Checkpoint DUI
California Highway Patrol began sobriety checkpoint operations in 1984 and as of December 31, 1995, has conducted 2,036 sobriety checkpoints throughout the state which resulted in 1,150,180 vehicles being screened; 28,940 field sobriety tests (FSTs) conducted; 9,777 impaired drivers arrested, and citing and/or arresting 2,944 persons for other violations.
In California in order for a "checkpoint" to be legal it must be operated in compliance with certain standards. Those standards are:
- Decision making at the supervisory level
- Which cars are stopped
- Location of checkpoint
- Limits on discretion of field officers as to who is to be stopped
- Were cars to be stopped determined by supervisors
- Did field officers decide who to stop
- Maintenance of safety conditions
- Well lit area
- How many officers present
- Reasonable location of checkpoint
- Reasonable time and duration of checkpoint
- Indicia of the official nature of the roadblock
- Traffic cones
- Posted signs
- Uniformed officers
- Length and nature of detention
- Advance publicity regarding each checkpoint
Absence of one of eight factors for assessing intrusiveness of sobriety checkpoint does not render checkpoint unconstitutional.