Why do police tell the public about DUI checks before they happen? Your CA question, answered

Brianna Taylor
·2 min read
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Officers routinely conduct DUI checkpoints across California, but disclosing when and where they’ll be posted has left many questioning the effectiveness of it all.

Reader Lynn Belzer asked the Bee’s service journalism team this question: “Why are DUI checkpoints publicized prior to the dates of the events? Doesn’t this defeat their purpose?”

We consulted the Sacramento Police Department to understand the reasoning behind announcing sobriety checkpoints instead of catching impaired drivers in the act.

Here’s what we found.

Why are DUI checkpoints publicized in California?

It’s required by law, said Officer Cody Tapley, a spokesman for the Sacramento Police Department. In a phone interview with The Sacramento Bee, he said there are several requirements outlining why “we have to do it that way.”

“The primary purpose of checkpoints is not to make arrests, but to promote public safety by deterring drivers from driving impaired,” the department wrote in an email to The Bee.

Sacramento police denied an email request Friday morning for statistics on how many arrests have been made at their DUI checkpoints within the last year. The Bee then filed a California Public Records Act request, which requires an agency response within 10 business days.

Law enforcement agencies across California must adhere to the following federal and state guidelines when conducting DUI checkpoints, according to an email from Sacramento police:

  • Checkpoints are established by supervising officers.

  • Drivers are stopped using a formula.

  • Proper lighting, signs, official cars and officers are used.

  • Checkpoints are fair and made by a government official.

  • The time and duration of the checkpoint was conducted in “good judgment.”

  • Official signs are stationed at the checkpoint.

  • Decrease the average time drivers are stopped.

  • The checkpoint is publicized prior to the event.

In 2021, more than 13,000 people died in drunk driving car crashes in the U.S., according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. That represents a 14% increase from 2020.

Checkpoints are chosen based on both previous DUI-related crashes and arrests, according to an Aug. 31 news release from Sacramento police. Motorists typically get a heads-up one day before the event on the exact or approximate location of the stop.

What do you want to know about life in Sacramento? Ask our service journalism team your top-of-mind questions in the module below or email servicejournalists@sacbee.com.