The Common Law

Police Roadblocks & DUI

DWI roadblocks are valid in Texas under extremely limited circumstances. The constitutional rights afforded to you ensure that an officer may only stop you after the officer has obtained individualized, reasonable suspicion that you have violated the law. A DWI roadblock acts as a substitute for the individualized, reasonable suspicion needed under a normal traffic stop. As such, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has held that sobriety checkpoints may only be used in rare circumstances.

Texas counties have begun executing roadblocks on special holidays after first demonstrating a higher than normal number of alcohol-related arrests and accidents during that time. At the very least, it will become common for roadblocks to be held in Travis County on New Year's Eve and the Fourth of July holidays. While there are no uniform legal standards for DWI roadblocks, the following are some of the requirements that must be met for a roadblock to be legally upheld.

Supervisory personnel must be involved in the planning of the roadblock. The officers must follow a uniform pattern in terms of which vehicles are stopped and how individual drivers are treated. The roadblock must be performed in a safe, well-lit area and must not be intended to target a specific population. The roadblock must not be at a time when it will be likely to impede a large volume of traffic. The official nature of the roadblock must be open and obvious to oncoming motorists, and there must be some advance publicity of the roadblock. If you are detained in a roadblock, you have the same rights to remain silent and refuse to provide a breath or blood sample as you do in an individualized traffic stop.