Are there such things as illegal DUI checkpoints in SC and can you avoid them regardless?

Lyn Riddle
·2 min read

Are DUI checkpoints legal in South Carolina?

You bet your license they are.

Just google the term and up comes a slew of answers to that question, most from defense attorneys who defend people charged with DUI.

South Carolina law says you can’t drive if your “faculties to drive are materially and appreciably impaired.” And checkpoints are one way to flush out those who do it anyway.

The U.S. Supreme Court in 1990 ruled that sobriety checkpoints do not violate the 4th amendment of the Constitution, the right to not be subjected to unreasonable search and seizure. Checkpoints must be nothing more than a slight intrusion, be run according to a plan that limits officers’ discretion and be for the purpose of getting drunk drivers off the road.

“The police do not have the authority to set up DUI checkpoints at random. However, for example, if a specific area has experienced more than its fair share of dangerous drunk driving accidents, a DUI checkpoint may be a valid response,” the law firm Bannister, Wyatt and Stalvey in Greenville says on its website.

Here are some of the other rules:

  • The checkpoint must be publicized.

  • Officers cannot stop vehicles randomly.

  • The stops must have warning lights and the area be well lit.

  • There must be a sign saying whether it is a license and registration checkpoint or a DUI checkpoint.

But what happens if you see a checkpoint ahead? Can you turn around to avoid it?

Here’s what Lexington attorney James R. Snell Jr. says:

“Fortunately, turning down another road or otherwise making a legal driving maneuver to avoid the checkpoint is not against the law. However, if you violate a traffic law in order to bypass a checkpoint, a police officer has the right to pull you over.”

In other words, turning into a street is fine, but no u-turns, no crossing a solid line or median, no running a light or driving the wrong way. And always, always use your turn signal.

Here’s something to think about: an officer might see you doing that and follow you to see if you show signs of impairment.

The Bannister firm offers these suggestions if you are stopped at a checkpoint. Remain calm, cooperate with law enforcement without saying anything that might incriminate you (you have the right to remain silent in the face of questions put to you by the police) and get out of your car if you’re asked to do so.