Let's Rethink Sobriety Checkpoints

-

Sobriety checkpoints were first introduced in Scandinavia in the 1930s. The United States adopted the practice in the 1980s, as Mothers Against Drunk Driving launched a widespread awareness campaign on the dangers of drunk driving. To date, sobriety checkpoints remain a controversial topic. A quick google search returns a swath of DUI lawyer webpages, advising drivers not to roll down their windows and consent to breathalyzer tests by authorities. Some argue that sobriety checkpoints violate the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures. These opponents maintain that authorities do not have the right to stop vehicles at checkpoints without probable cause.

The U.S. Supreme Court held up the legality of sobriety checkpoints in a 1990 decision, but ultimately it is up to the states. If you live in Oregon, chances are you may be unfamiliar with sobriety checkpoints because they were ruled unconstitutional in 1987. Oregon is one of a minority of states that do not allow the forced stopping of all motorists in an attempt to find drunk drivers. Thirty-eight states and Washington D.C. allow DUI checkpoints, but twelve states prohibit them by state law or state constitution.

The flaws associated with sobriety checkpoints are numerous. Critics frequently question their efficacy, pointing to cases where very few impaired drivers were actually cited. For example, a 2016 California checkpoint drew attention for stopping almost 1,400 drivers and failing to yield a single arrest. Checkpoints are also highly visible operations, and easily can be avoided by drivers. In fact, there’s an app for that. Checkpoints also come with high costs. The Los Angeles Police Department reportedly spent $16,200 per checkpoint in 2010, all of which was spent on officer overtime. Of course, these stories fail to capture the number of drivers who chose not to drink and drive due to perceived apprehension at a checkpoint.
Is there a more cost effective deterrent? A 2017 study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that flexible checkpoints are a useful and economical alternative. Also known as “phantom” or “mock” checkpoints, flexible checkpoints create the appearance of a traditional checkpoint by staging, but not fully staffing, a checkpoint operation. A small number of officers set up the signs and park one or more patrol vehicles at the site, but no drivers are stopped and no arrests are made. Flexible checkpoints can be moved to different locations over the course of an evening, and can be set up in locations that do not typically permit checkpoints, such as intersections. The primary goal is to spread awareness through observance and word of mouth, increasing the deterrent effect. States would be wise to adopt these strategies to supplement other enforcement activities to deter impaired driving.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The worst congestion in the world

-
Image
While I was going to school at UCLA, the car-culture was very apparent to me. The city also felt incredibly spread out, and it would sometimes take me more than an hour by bus to get downtown. I did not own a car the entire time I lived in LA, and I felt very limited. I quickly became bored with Westwood, the neighborhood that UCLA is in, and the only neighborhood that was within walking distance of my apartment and I had to rely on my friends to drive me to the beach or other neighborhoods. I was surprised when I read in Sorenson’s article, “Moving Los Angeles”, that despite Los Angeles reputation for sprawl, it is actually quite dense when compared to the nation’s 14 largest metropolitan areas. In class, we talked about how Los Angeles is the only major city that has become denser since the 1960s. Los Angeles is not as dense as New York City, but it is quite dense at a regional scale. The suburbs are denser on average than suburbs in other cities. Reflecting on this more, I realized
Read more

The age of automation

-
Image
Cities across the nation, including Phoenix, Boston, and San Francisco, have already begun allowing transportation network companies (TNCs), such as Uber and Lyft, to test out new autonomous vehicle (AV) technology. However, after the March 18 Uber crash, which resulted in the death of a woman, many cities put a halt to the testing. Despite this incident, cities have not terminated their plans to introduce self-driving vehicles onto their streets. Some cities, including Boston, MA, are gradually introducing AVs, starting with small driverless zones. Philadelphia, PA, has established a rigorous testing process. AVs must meet important standards, such as emergency braking and basic driving capabilities before the vehicles are released to the streets (Krauss, 2018) . Many cities are still excited about the potential benefits of AVs. The Boston municipal government argues that the introduction of AVs could lead to improved accessibility for people living with the aging population and
Read more

Uh oh. Does Vision Zero Reinforce White Supremacy in the United States?

-
Many US cities, including Portland, have adopted Vision Zero strategies as a response to pedestrian and bicyclist traffic safety needs. Vision Zero, a traffic safety approach which originated in Sweden, is a program that aims to ultimately reduce the number of traffic-related-deaths to zero (Vision Zero Network 2018). The program’s approach is multifaceted, using public education, street design, legislation and law enforcement to reach its desired outcomes (Elevbakk 2007, Trujillo 2014). Sounds like a win-win, right? Ah, but let’s not forget our mantra of equity: “who gets what when and why?”. There is often more to the policy than we see at first glance. Indeed, Vision Zero does have its critics. Critiques of Vision Zero focus on concerns related to equity – including issues related to location of infrastructural improvements, and racially biased enforcement of traffic related laws (Bliss 2016). In cities like Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York, mobility justice groups have raised c
Read more