Law Enforcement Officers Agree: Sobriety Checkpoints Inefficient in Nabbing Drunk Drivers

'In Their Own Words' (Third in a Series)

WASHINGTON, Dec. 5 -- 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.

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