Law Enforcement Officers Agree: Sobriety Checkpoints Inefficient
in Nabbing Drunk Drivers
WASHINGTON,
Dec. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Law enforcement officers across the country
agree that roadblock campaigns are not effective in targeting
and arresting drunk drivers, according to a new report by the
American Beverage Institute. The report, which features quotes
from the nation's leading traffic safety experts and police officers
who have patrolled roadblocks firsthand, is further evidence that
the nation is on the wrong track in its efforts to combat drunk
driving.
"Many
police agencies say the checkpoints, while effective at raising
public awareness, are not the most efficient way to get drunk
drivers off the road on any given night."
The Washington
Post, December 2002
"Checkpoints yield very little enforcement."
-- Inspector John Sassano, NYPD
"The
figures show roadblocks are not the answer to drunk driving."
-- Fairfax County Police Chief Carroll D. Buracker
"I don't miss the roadblocks at all. ... Now we can put the
units in the areas of high violation, high accident and high resident
request levels."
Westboro,
MA Police Chief Glenn Parker
"It is not a valid use of police time. We are involved in
enforcement and education, but we do not have to include mass
inconvenience and mass fear."
Wayne, NJ
Police Chief Robert H. Pringle
"They have not worked, and they will not work. As an Indiana
State Trooper in the early 1980s, I quickly realized that roadblocks
are all about public relations and have very little to do with
safety. In fact, roadblocks make it more likely that dangerously
drunken drivers will not be caught. Roadblocks require the deployment
of more officers than they are worth, stretching already overtaxed
police resources even further."
Stan Worthington,
former Indiana State Trooper
"Police prefer to conduct regular patrols rather than checkpoints
because patrols may yield more arrests."
Susan Ferguson,
senior vice president for research, Insurance Institute for Highway
Safety
To view "In Their Own Words," visit www.AmericanBeverageInstitute.com.
The American Beverage Institute is an association of restaurants
and on- premise retailers committed to the responsible serving
of adult beverages.
Source:
American Beverage Institute
