Sobriety checkpoints are regularly conducted across metro Atlanta, especially on weekends and during holidays and other periods of heightened DUI efforts. Knowing what the police can and cannot ask you at an equipment inspection stop in Fulton, DeKalb, Cobb or Gwinnett County can help you navigate the encounter with more confidence and help you prevent accidentally making it a worse situation for yourself.
Georgia courts have ruled that DUI checkpoints are constitutional, as long as they follow certain procedures. Police should adopt a specific formula for stopping vehicles at a checkpoint, such as stopping every car, or every third car, not stopping any particular drivers based on their personal opinion. The checkpoint has to be authorized prior to its use by a supervisory officer and there must be a legitimate primary reason for it, such as checking license and registration requirements or identifying impaired drivers. Failure to meet these requirements properly may allow a challenge to the legality of the stop itself to be made at times.
If you approach a checkpoint, you must stop your vehicle and produce your driver’s license and proof of insurance and vehicle registration, if requested. It’s a common occurrence with every traffic stop in Georgia, checkpoints included. But you don’t have to answer questions regarding where you are from, where you are going, or whether you have been drinking, beyond giving this basic information. It is your right to answer these kinds of questions in a polite manner and without giving details.
Some drivers feel a need to respond to all questions by an officer just because they are uneasy or they want to seem cooperative. You can be polite and respectful and still exercise your right to remain silent after you’ve provided the information mandated by law. Just saying that you don’t want to answer questions is not automatically an admission of guilt, and is not a sufficient reason for an officer to investigate a stop as a DUI case.
Officers may request to exit the vehicle for further testing if they have a suspicion of impairment based on factors like smelly or slurred speech, bloodshot eyes, and so on, and this is likely to include the field sobriety testing. In Georgia, any physical exercises are voluntary as part of a traffic stop and refusal to take them does not have an automatic penalty as refusal of a chemical test after arrest. However, another observation by an officer can also justify an arrest, and an officer’s decision to refuse to arrest should be based on an understanding of that distinction.
Different counties in Metro Atlanta may not have the same coordination with each other for checkpoints, and priorities for enforcement may vary by county. Fulton and DeKalb County checkpoints are typically clustered around the downtown Atlanta area and major entertainment corridors, while Cobb and Gwinnett County checkpoints are usually clustered in high-traffic commuter areas and around bars or entertainment venues. Although the approach to enforcement of these constitutional protections may differ across counties, the principles underlying the protections are the same.
When arrested at a checkpoint, the legality of the checkpoint is usually one of the first issues reviewed when preparing a defense. This involves looking for any significant deviations from usual procedures, if any were followed, any reason to believe that the stop was escalated for no good cause, and if your rights were respected during the encounter. This is the type of information an Atlanta DUI Lawyer will explore during an examination of the facts surrounding the arrest at a check point.
With his background, James Yeargan, a recognized DUI defense attorney in the Atlanta area, has a unique perspective on checkpoint cases. For several years, he served as a DUI/drug prosecutor for the City of Atlanta and was subsequently trained at Georgia Police Academy in field sobriety testing, radar/laser operation and procedures. That mixture of prosecutorial and law enforcement training is what guides the type of process that will be subjected to the constitutional touch when a stop at a checkpoint is examined for compliance.
Information regarding what to expect doesn’t guarantee a particular outcome, as each DUI stop is unique, with its own set of facts and circumstances. Despite this, knowing what you should and shouldn’t do can minimize the confusion at the stop. Call an Atlanta DUI Attorney as soon as possible after an arrest after a checkpoint stop in Metro Atlanta to ensure you understand if the stop was conducted properly, and what you may be able to do going forward.
