Mississippi Roadblock Laws

Many citizens in 2020 use a roadblock app of one type or another. The Waze app is the most used, but it simply reads the route of the highway you`ve chosen (which you`ve programmed on your phone) and tells you when “the police came forward.” This “real-time” driver information is very accurate when it tells you that there may be roadblocks near my home or that only one officer is wearing a traffic shirt from another vehicle. “If an officer stops you even at a roadblock and their purpose, as they clearly stated, was to verify and make sure you have a valid license and insurance, they have the right to do that,” Carmody said. In some states, sobriety checkpoints are not legal. In Mississippi, DUI roadblocks are generally acceptable as long as they meet certain requirements. In several cases, Mississippi courts of appeals have confirmed various “objectives” for stops at Mississippi checkpoints. Hampton v. State, 966 So.2d 863 (Miss. Ct App, 2007); McLendon v. Staat, 845 So.2d 372 (Miss. Sup. Ct., 2006).

The book Mississippi DUI Laws from our law firm, Mississippi DUI: Law and Practice, section 4:7, states: “As long as the roadblock is set up LEGALLY and operated under strict and established guidelines that ensure that no discrimination or profiling has occurred.” Senior Partner Victor Carmody also wrote the book on criminal law forms in Mississippi. The sight of a DUI checkpoint on the road you`re traveling on can quickly sober up a drunk driver. Roadblocks aren`t legal in a dozen states, but Mississippi lawmakers have done so over the past 30 years (since Michigan v. The headquarters made no effort to change state law to limit the legality of police roadblock checks without a court order looking for drunk drivers. This article is intended to inform you about your DUI checkpoint rights. Imagine for a second while driving down the street when you suddenly (or not so suddenly) hit a police roadblock. You know you didn`t drink alcohol. They approach the roadblock – knowing that the roadblock will be short. However, this is no ordinary obstacle.

This is a no-denial roadblock – an obstacle where motorists suspected of being impaired and subsequently denied field sobriety tests could be ordered to have a blood test after a warrant is issued. Our nation`s highest court ruled in 1990 that protecting the Fourth Amendment from warrantless search and seizure requires an exception for impaired drivers. In a split decision, the majority decided that the safety of public roads and the high number of drunk-driving deaths that existed at the time warranted brief intervention to verify the sobriety of all drivers and the use of appropriate safety equipment and roadblocks set up for these limited purposes. They can therefore be detained, but not for long and only for these limited “exceptions”. (3) When stopping a motor vehicle at a roadblock where all passing motorists are stopped for the purposes of traffic rules, or when stopping a motor vehicle for any other offence under the Act, the enforcement officer authorized to issue traffic warnings shall verify that the insurance card required under this section is in the motor vehicle or by electronic image on a mobile telephone or another electronic device.  However, no driver may be stopped or detained solely to verify whether the motor vehicle is covered by third-party liability insurance in the amounts required under paragraph 63-15-3(j), unless the stop is part of such a roadblock.  If the enforcement officer uses the verification system set out in section 63-16-3 and receives a response from the system confirming that the owner of the motor vehicle has liability insurance in the amount required under paragraph 63-15-3(j), the officer may not issue a ticket under this section even if the owner or operator does not provide an insurance card. “A roadblock set up for the purpose of checking driver`s licenses, insurance, trailers and vehicle registrations, etc., field sobriety checkpoints are clearly legal,” Steffey said.

Wayne Halcomb recorded his encounter with an officer at a JPD roadblock Friday at Robinson Road. He repeatedly refused to provide identification and proof of insurance. “People think these are barriers, and people have misunderstood that we are targeting a certain group of people. Our intention is to get wanted people off the streets,” Davis said. “We have arrest warrants pending again looking for people for murder, aggravated assault, carjacking, rape and shooting and driving.” The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected some other types of random mobile checkpoints. In City of Indianapolis v. 2000 Edmond, Indiana police decided to try to extend detention in Michigan Dept.

of State Police v. sitz to the same type of drug prohibition. The U.S. Supreme Court overturned the state court`s decision to scan drivers for drug use, which is commonly done in some European countries where there is no 4th Amendment. Later, in Illinois v. Lidster, a 2004 statement, when police set up a roadblock in an attempt to find a dangerous criminal at large, and a drunk driving driver was accidentally discovered, that roadblock was legal. Matt Steffey, a professor at Mississippi College School of Law, said roadblocks and law enforcement checkpoints are constitutional if every motorist is stopped. They also give officers the ability to arrest warrants, drug possession or impaired persons. Even if you take an alternative route to avoid such potential sobriety checkpoints, you can still be stopped if your exit from the roadblock entrance tonight is “suspicious” of violating any traffic laws. Just follow the 9 roadblock tips from our other article on DUI checkpoints. Even if you are firmly committed to never driving after drinking alcohol, life can intervene.

If you have a blood alcohol level above the legal limit of 0.08% in Mississippi, officers may stop you at a field sobriety checkpoint. Since there are harsh penalties for intoxicated violators, it`s wise to explore all your defenses. Before I talk about the legality of the “No Refusal” weekend campaign, I want to say that I understand that driving under the influence is a problem in the state of Mississippi. I also acknowledge that drunk driving accidents have increased in the state in recent years. While drivers driving under the influence of alcohol continue to be a problem, as a society we need to pay attention to the freedoms we sacrifice to solve a problem like drunk driving. If you encounter a checkpoint, have no signs that would trigger the claim of probable cause by the official, and are still required to submit to the invasion of a blood test, please contact us at office@aclu-ms.org or 601-354-3408. 1. The following vehicles are exempt from the requirements of this section: Although it pains me to say this, if it were done under a valid warrant, the collection of a person`s blood at a “No Reweisal” checkpoint would be constitutional.

The Mississippi Supreme Court has ruled that the Fourth Amendment`s prohibition on improper search and seizure applies when an intrusion into the body — such as a blood test — is performed without a warrant, except in an emergency. With the McNeely decision, the court indirectly justified the blood sample during a traffic check – if an arrest warrant is properly obtained. To help us defend your rights and fight government intrusion: sign up for action alerts, follow us on Twitter and like us on Facebook. (c) motor vehicles self-insured in accordance with section 63-15-53;  and To fully understand the No Denial campaign, let`s discuss the legality of sobriety checkpoints. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a police checkpoint set up to identify a drunk driver complies with the Fourth Amendment. Essentially, the Supreme Court concluded that a checkpoint established to identify impaired drivers is constitutional if properly conducted. One of these options may be to challenge the legality of the field sobriety checkpoint. If you can prove that the officers did not follow the protocol when setting up the checkpoint, you may be able to obtain an acquittal. 6. When applying the provisions of this Section, no law enforcement officer may access any function, feature or other electronic image on a person`s mobile phone or other type of electronic device, other than the electronic image of an insurance card presented to the official. Chief Davis said Halcomb was allowed to leave because of the safety concern for officers and motorists with congested traffic in the area.

JPD reports more than 100 felony arrests at checkpoints since January. It is generally unacceptable for officials to waste motorists` time at sober checkpoints. That said, officers should only stop vehicles as long as necessary to determine whether drivers are under the influence of alcohol or another substance. According to Clarion-Ledger, eight Mississippi counties participated in the “No Refusal” weekend campaign on Sept. 5-6. The Clarion Ledger also reported that there were 152 arrests for drunk driving and 31 blood samples. Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on a case that essentially establishes the correct procedures an officer must follow to draw a driver`s blood. On Thursday, the Mississippi ACLU called on the JPD to end checkpoints, calling the Ticket Arrest Tow or TAT initiative unconstitutional, bad policy and vulnerable to major legal exposures.