Posted on 05/31/2006 12:54:05 PM PDT by AzaleaCity5691
Police arrest 67 at checkpoints Wednesday, May 31, 2006 By NADIA M. TAYLOR Staff Reporter Officers issued more than 1,800 tickets and arrested 67 people over the Memorial Day weekend at several driver's license checkpoints throughout the city, police said.
Most of the 1,834 tickets issued were for not having a driver's license or proof of insurance, according to interim Mobile police Chief Lester Hargrove.
Fifty-four people were arrested on outstanding misdemeanor warrants, and 13 people were arrested on felony warrants, Hargrove said. Most charges stemmed from traffic violations or drug offenses, police said.
One man, Carl Mitchell Washington, 22, was driving with his 2-year-old son when police stopped him at a checkpoint and found about 30 pills, which were believed to be Ecstasy, and $2,775 in cash, Hargrove said.
Washington was charged Sunday with possession of a controlled substance and endangering the welfare of a child and was released on a $3,500 bond, according to the Mobile County Metro Jail log.
Under Alabama law, possession of a controlled substance is a Class C felony, punishable by up to 10 years in jail. Endangering the welfare of a child is a Class A misdemeanor, which can carry a sentence of up to one year in jail, according to state law.
In addition to the weekend arrests, police seized two handguns and towed 53 vehicles as a result of the checkpoints, Hargrove said.
The topic of roadblocks garnered substantial media attention last month after two men were shot to death at a McDonald's drive-through in northeast Mobile. After the April 5 killings, city officials called for more frequent random checkpoints to look for and seize illegal weapons.
The latest round of checkpoints -- which ran Friday through Monday -- was the third weekend since April 28 that police have set up roadblocks in Mobile. Police issued a total of 1,362 citations during the first two weekends, which took place April 28 and 29 and May 5 and 6.
Heck, why stop with checkpoints at airports, highways, government buildings, and schools? Let's just have cops do quick pat-downs of everyone, going from neighborhood to neighborhood every morning in front of everyone's home. Then we can make sure this kind of thing won't happen any more.
This thing, of course, being freedom. Pesky stuff. Our government needs to root it out now before it's too late.
"It's a good idea and it should be adopted around the country"
Yes it is
Just one step from "Papers please!"
Which is what we ALL want
/sarc
"81% of area residents support the roadblocks, the highest level of support for anything recently polled. "
80% of the people supported Hitler and the Nazi party in the early days of WW2 as well.
The rest were eventually.... re-educated. Those that survived anyway.
"...the Court has clearly and plainly held that checkpoint programs whose primary purpose was to detect evidence of ordinary criminal wrongdoing are unconstitutional."
Which we all know is a load of $#!#, as any cop checkpoints become for the purpose of 'safety' or some other b.s. to skirt that prohibition. Government employees--ESPECIALLY the SCOTUS--are the last people I want protecting me. They protected Randy Weaver's wife and the kids at Waco to death, and protected Elian Gonzalez right back into Castro's arms.
Actually, it is.
What part of "...shall not be infringed" do you not get?
I bet this mass shakedown was a real moneymaker, though. /sarc
If they ask if they can look in your car, just say no.
L
There is that somewhat contorted logic which would say that refusal to permit a search by LEOs would be probable cause for a search...
Assertings ones Constitutional rights cannot be considered probable cause.
L
Pez containers are illegal? What's up with that?
Sorry, forgot the sarcasm tag. I am saying they can use any excuse to search a vehicle.
If the cops ask for permission, it means they have no PC and are just fishing. Do what I do. Tell them politely to get a warrant.
L
They can threaten, cajole, and imply whatever they like but they must have a warrant to search your vehicle if they lack PC.
L
Do you understand that the Constitution and Bill of Rights addendum do not enumerate your rights?
All your rights are unenumerated, but abortion and affirmative action are torts committed against others. No one has the right to take another's rights, which is what those actions ac complish.
If the rest of the population was as like mined as yourself, there would be no need for road blocks,in Scotland they have just passed a law that allows the police to stop and search anyone they THINK maybe carrying a concealed weapon, this is because of the over 600 murders in Scotland last year more than half were committed with a knife, to now OWN I repeat, OWN, a knife that is not deemed a kitchen knife can get you up to 5 years in jail.
If the rest of the population was as like mined as yourself, there would be no need for road blocks,in Scotland they have just passed a law that allows the police to stop and search anyone they THINK maybe carrying a concealed weapon, this is because of the over 600 murders in Scotland last year more than half were committed with a knife, to now OWN I repeat, OWN, a knife that is not deemed a kitchen knife can get you up to 5 years in jail.
Sounds great on paper - not reality.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.