Coopertown PD To Hold DUI Checkpoint May 6th
COOPERTOWN TENNESSEE: (Smokey Barn News) – On Friday, May 6th, from 1:00 am to 3:00 am, the Coopertown Police Department will be conducting a multijurisdictional sobriety checkpoint located at Tom Austin Hwy and Old 431 S in Coopertown, TN. The focus of this event is to detect impaired drivers, mitigate traffic-related injuries, and enforce safety-sensitive laws (seat belt/child restraint/distracted driving, etc).
“The Coopertown Police Department recognizes that roadside sobriety checkpoints are highly visible and effective tools in the battle against impaired and distracted driving,” said Coopertown Police Chief Tyler Haley. “Our goal with this checkpoint is to decrease the number of impaired drivers on TN roadways and to enforce safety-sensitive traffic laws.”
“The Coopertown Police Department would like to remind citizens to wear their seatbelts, drive safe, and never drive impaired. Impaired driving may result in your injury/death or the injury/death of an innocent person. Always drive responsibly. This enforcement initiative is funded by the Tennessee Highway Safety Office.”
Why do police advertise checkpoints ahead of time?
Because of the Fourth Amendment. The Fourth Amendment protects citizens against unreasonable searches and seizures, however, sobriety checkpoints are not prohibited by the Fourth Amendment (if) police advertise them in advance. There are even Apps that display police checkpoints on a map by using GPS and self-reporting by other users, similar to what Google Maps does with its traffic congestion feature. In fact, if a police checkpoint causes any kind of back up it will likely appear as congestion on Google Maps automatically.
If stopped at a sobriety check, police may also determine that there is “probable cause” to search a vehicle. That could lead to finding illegal drugs or weapons, according to Wikipedia.