Paso Robles police holding DUI checkpoint on Saturday night

I have no problem with the “looking for signs of impairment” part of DUI checkpoints. This is an observation of behavior in public. My grandparents were killed by a drunk driver many years ago, and I grew up having only one set of grandparents, so I know the terrible consequence drunk driving can have.

However, I also believe it is clearly a fourth amendment violation when “Officers check licenses and insurance” as these are acts of an illegal search. “The right of the people to be secure in their… papers…against unreasonable searches… shall not be violated…” without a warrant based on “probable cause, supported by Oath…”. These quotes are straight from the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States which is a portion of what is also called the Bill of Rights. Asking for a license and/or proof of insurance is acceptable, but demanding same under threat is not acceptable. There is no warrant, and even if there was, it would not be specific to that person, and would not be supported by affirmation of any crime committed by that individual.  This is no different than stopping anyone on the street and arbitrarily demanding ID, which for right now at least, is still illegal).

I’m probably going to get a lot of s… stuff about this opinion from those to whom the Constitution is just a suggestion and otherwise, just a nuisance, and those who cannot recognize a police state even when experiencing same. I don’t care. If we don’t draw the line somewhere we will soon regularly experience police secretly searching houses sans warrant while occupants are not home, or police searching those the press sans warrant and seizing property just because the police are afraid of what that press outlet might say about them, all done with complete impunity. (Both these incidents occurred in the US and are or have been in the news recently.)