NC DUI Checkpoint Law

DWI Checkpoints are relatively common in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.  Many are established by the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department CMPD pursuant to the North Carolina Governor’s Highway Safety Program.

It is a complicated area of law, controlled both by North Carolina General Statutes (NCGS) 20-16.3A  and appellate court case law.

Checkpoints are somewhat unique in that people are stopped and questioned without having had committed, or even being suspected of violating a criminal or traffic law.

Normally either “reasonable suspicion” or in some instances, “probable cause” is required prior to “seizure” by law enforcement. License checks and DUI checkpoints are subject to a fair amount of scrutiny by legal counsel and the courts.

Generally speaking, sobriety checkpoints are established:

• Using a “primary programmatic purposes,” where the Courts review the rationale for stopping motorists on a particular roadway and time; and,
• Limited in duration and scope; and,
• Narrowly tailored to achieve the objectives or “purposes” of the checkpoint; and,
• Do NOT allow discretion by individual officers in determining what particular vehicles to stop; and,
• Operated subject to a checkpoint plan or policy; and,
• Subject to supervision by senior level Law Enforcement.

If you, a friend or family member has been charged with a violation of N.C.G.S. 20-138.1 (Driving While Impaired) in North Carolina, please feel free to call NC criminal law firm Powers Law Firm PA today. Confidential initial consultations are free of charge.