Vanderburgh County – Sometime during this upcoming weekend, Indiana State Police will be conducting a sobriety checkpoint in Vanderburgh County. The exact location, date and time will not be released. Motorists that are not impaired can expect only short delays of 2-3 minutes while passing through the checkpoint.
Troopers encourage all motorists to call 911 or the closest Indiana State Police Post when they observe another motorist that may be impaired. Be prepared to give a description of the vehicle, location and direction of travel.
The Indiana State Police are committed to traffic safety and will continue to conduct saturation patrols and sobriety checkpoints to apprehend impaired drivers and to deter others from drinking and driving.
Unconstitutional, “papers please”, police state checkpoints are despicable.
Where’s the probable cause to stop motorists en masse? I will follow my usual approach to unlawful checkpoints by pleading the Fifth Amendment, refusing to answer questions, and refusing any requests for searches of my person or property in the absence of a warrant or probable cause.
I’m all for deterring drunk drivers, but I’m also for deterring gun violence and you won’t see me advocating the police stop people and frisk them in the street or ask if they are carrying a weapon.
Despicable or not, they are NOT unconstitutional. 6-3 decision in Michigan Dept. of State Police v. Sitz (1990), the United States Supreme Court found properly conducted sobriety checkpoints to be constitutional.
You are right. They are required to post the dates and times and locations of the blocks in advance to be Constitutional according to that ruling, I think. At any rate, I will still plead the Fifth and document any police encounter with a camera where possible as a general policy.
Never a bad idea to both minimize your verbal interaction with and document any encounters with LEOs, and I say that as a person with deep family and professional ties to that community.
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