Every year thousands of people all across the United States are injured or killed in drunk driving related auto accidents. According to statistics, more than twenty three thousand people are killed by drunk drivers every year. This is such a waste of these lives and something needs to be done to stop this.

The solution that many states have utilized to deal with the rising numbers of DUI’s is DUI checkpoints. These are checkpoints where police officers randomly check and see if drivers are intoxicated by alcohol. The officers typically go to the second or third driver in the checkpoint line and ask them if they have been drinking. Most of the time, police officers’ conduct these check points on holidays or weekends during the night time hours.

Many drivers hate DUI checkpoints because they take a while to get through and cause them to be delayed. However, statistics have found that DUI checkpoints often lead to finding drunk drivers before they can hurt someone so they are very great public safety tools to have.

Some defendants who have been charged with DUI related offenses have objected to the constitutionality of DUI checkpoints. Many people have their vehicles or bodies searched if the officer smells alcohol on their breath or in their vehicle. If officers’ conduct these searches reasonably then they are typically always upheld in court.

Drivers know of the locations of DUI checkpoints at least a week in advance. People cannot cry foul because they have ample warning of the checkpoint locations and can either avoid going near the checkpoints or just stay off the road.

When an alleged drunk driver goes to court the police officer or officers who arrested them and conducted the breathalyzer test and field sobriety tests will be questioned. The police officer must explain if the driver was stopped based on a formula that was set up to randomly see if drivers were intoxicated at the time. If the officer stated that he did not follow the predetermined formula that officers were given, then the whole case could fall apart.

In most states within the United States, the legal limit for a person’s blood alcohol level is .08 If a driver is under the age of twenty one then their blood alcohol level must be below .02. If the driver is found to have too high of a blood alcohol level then they will be pulled out of the checkpoint line, their car will be impounded and they will be arrested and taken to jail. It does not pay to drink and drive and some have stated that DUI checkpoints should be year round and not just during the holidays to try and save more lives.

If you or a loved one has suffered injury by involvement in an accident caused by a drunk driver, please contact a personal injury attorney as soon as possible.