Posted on 12/30/2010 8:39:05 AM PST by Clint Williams
Tampa, Florida-- With New Year's Eve only days away, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration expects this to be one of the deadliest weeks of the year on the roads.
But now a new weapon is being used in the fight against drunk driving.
It's a change that could make you more likely to be convicted.
"I think it's a great deterrent for people," said Linda Unfried, from Mother's Against Drunk Driving in Hillsborough County.
Florida is among several states now holding what are called "no refusal" checkpoints.
It means if you refuse a breath test during a traffic stop, a judge is on site, and issues a warrant that allows police to perform a mandatory blood test. ...
(Excerpt) Read more at wtsp.com ...
Maybe they can bring in portable x-ray booths with TSA gropers too.
The constitution is stone cold dead and you, dear subject, are now presumed by the state to be guilty unless you can prove your innocence.
When you sign your license in Florida, you are consenting to any “sobriety test required by law”. No one is forced to sign, you just leave the DMV without a license.
Ping
All of Gov is pretty much doing the IRS thing; “Guilty, period...now pay up you low-life.”
I am ready for the Revolt...Where did I put that dang pitchfork?
What if you're not a Floridian?
SOP in most if not all states. Read the fine print when you sign for your license.
I don't think that would withstand a legal challenge. They can't take away your constitutional rights.
Sionnsar's point, I believe, is that people from other states did not consent to Florida sobriety checkpoints as a condition of getting their driver's license.
I don’t know what the law says about out of state drivers, but that quote is from the front of my FL license, right under my signature.
I think the theory is that people who have had too much to drink to be driving will refuse the breath test, at which point the nice officer will put you in his car and take you to the station to await a judge issuing a warrant for the blood draw, and the detainee hopes it is enough of a delay to bring blood alcohol levels back into the legal range.
This “new” tactic is just skipping a step.
Constitutional right to drive??? ROFLMAO!!!!
It’s already withstood numerous court challenges. Driving is a privilege not a right.
Driving is not a Constitutional right, and the people of Florida are freely consenting to laws in place when they make the choice to get their license.
Since then, it has been EVERY holiday weekend and of course now they want to have it implemented PERMANENTLY.
That's right, refuse the breath test and you will be SUBJECTED to have your blood drawn, NO QUESTIONS ASKED, they just do it, against your will.
And don't EVEN begin to tell me that if I'm not drunk I have nothing to worry about. This is nothing more than tyranny and a way to condition people to accept the fact that any LEO can do whatever the f**k they want, whether you like it or not!
Right. Skipping the step of a warrant. Which is where the violation of the Constitution comes in.
There are a whole lot of steps we could skip that would make law enforcement more efficient. Including trials, appeals, etc. Doesn’t make it either constitutional or a good idea.
If you read the story, it’s not skipping the step of the warrant. The story clearly states that the judge is on-site to issue the warrant.
I've gone through several DUI checkpoints and never been 'assumed guilty' nor have ever had to prove my innocence.
Unconstitutional.
“Vampire” laws allowing forced blood withdrawls are becoming more common.
Right. Just following the venerable FR tradition of responding without reading the article.
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