Our Irvine drunk driving criminal defense attorneys were interested to see that multiple local police agencies plan to run DUI roadblocks this weekend. The Orange County Register ran two different articles April 16 notifying drivers about a total of four checkpoints throughout the county, in Huntington Beach, Anaheim, Costa Mesa and Cypress. All of these will be conducted by the cities' own police departments. Three other cities in south OC -- Dana Point, San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano -- will be the focus of DUI roving patrols by the Orange County Sheriff's Department. These are in addition to weekly patrols and warrant sweeps aimed at finding drunk drivers.
The south OC, Anaheim and Costa Mesa events will take place Friday evening and stretch into early Saturday morning, while the Huntington Beach and Cypress checkpoints are slated for Saturday night and early Sunday morning. The roving DUI patrols are focused on catching intoxicated drivers as they drive, and will focus on areas in the three cities that have a high rate of DUI accidents or arrests. The sobriety checkpoints, which will also be driver's license checkpoints, will stop all vehicles that pass through a designated area and check the drivers for signs of intoxication. Those who appear intoxicated are typically given a breath or blood test and put through field sobriety tests to see whether there's enough evidence for an arrest. All of the operations were funded by a state-administered federal grant.
As Ontario DUI criminal defense lawyers, we dislike sobriety checkpoints on principle as well as for practical reasons. At a DUI checkpoint, the police stop every vehicle, or one out of every few vehicles, regardless of whether they have a reasonable suspicion that the driver may be intoxicated. In 1990, the U.S. Supreme Court acknowledged that this violates our Fourth Amendment right against unreasonable search and seizure. Incredibly, the court concluded that checkpoints are still permissible because they serve the state's interest in stopping drunk driving. Some defense attorneys call this the DUI exception to the Constitution. A more practical problem with the checkpoints is the evidence that they don't work well at increasing traffic safety. However, they do seem to be good for generating revenue for local governments. In fact, they have recently begun to attract criticism for finding more unlicensed drivers than drunks, allowing them to impound vehicles and collect high impound fees.
Howard Law, P.C. defends drivers who are accused of driving under the influence of drugs, alcohol or both in California. A charge of intoxicated driving can be life-changing. Just the accusation is enough to get your driver's license suspended, and if you don't move very quickly after your arrest, you will have no way to contest that suspension. If convicted of a first-time DUI, California drivers face potential jail time or probation, thousands of dollars in fines, alcohol classes, increased insurance fees and sometimes community service, vehicle impoundment or a night in jail. All in all, this can add up to thousands of dollars and threaten your ability to meet work, school or family obligations. Our Seal Beach intoxicated driving defense lawyers help drivers avoid these harsh penalties and resolve their cases in a way that won't overshadow the rest of their lives.
If you're charged with driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs in California, you should call Howard Law, P.C. to learn how we can help. To set up a free consultation, contact us online or call 1-800-872-5925.
