They have been running these things since 1975 that I know of- where a group of law officers set up on a city street and check the drivers' sobriety of all the vehicles that pass by.
The following figures are quite indicative of these checkpoints' effectiveness:
The STAR reported that late last Saturday and early Sunday- such a checkpoint set up on the north end of the Broadway bridge over the Missouri stopped "2541 vehicles.
Of ALL those stops- "15 were arrested for driving under the influence" and "2 were arrested for possession of a controlled substance."
Folks- that many arrests out of that many cars stopped- LESS THAN 1-percent- is NOT effective law-enforcement.
During the same time at least a half-dozen police are sitting at this checkpoint- other police zones run of of cars to run calls- what's called being "blacked out."
The above happens virtually every TV news weekend shift I have worked since 1991.
My thoughts are that those cops sitting on checkpoints would be FAR more effective on the streets- spotting impaired drivers and being available for other reported crimes.
I'm willing to bet they would net more than less than one-percent that way too.
The following figures are quite indicative of these checkpoints' effectiveness:
The STAR reported that late last Saturday and early Sunday- such a checkpoint set up on the north end of the Broadway bridge over the Missouri stopped "2541 vehicles.
Of ALL those stops- "15 were arrested for driving under the influence" and "2 were arrested for possession of a controlled substance."
Folks- that many arrests out of that many cars stopped- LESS THAN 1-percent- is NOT effective law-enforcement.
During the same time at least a half-dozen police are sitting at this checkpoint- other police zones run of of cars to run calls- what's called being "blacked out."
The above happens virtually every TV news weekend shift I have worked since 1991.
My thoughts are that those cops sitting on checkpoints would be FAR more effective on the streets- spotting impaired drivers and being available for other reported crimes.
I'm willing to bet they would net more than less than one-percent that way too.
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