The first sobriety checkpoint in at least the last couple of years, if not longer, is being set up Friday night. Speaking on KNCO’s On the Town, local CHP Commander, Noah Hawkins, says that’ll be between 6 and midnight. He mentions the county also has some geographical challenges regarding a proper set-up…

click to listen to CHP Commander Hawkins

In 1990, a divided U.S Supreme Court ruled that detaining all drivers at a DUI checkpoint was constitutional. But previously-established guidelines still apply…

click to listen to CHP Commander Hawkins

The ruling also requires revealing the location of a checkpoint. In this case, that was released about two hours ahead of time. It’s on Colfax Avenue near Henderson Street, where past checkpoints have been conducted. California conducts over 25-hundred checkpoints a year. But research has found that they’ve not been that effective. Saturation patrols, which use officers to focus specifically on signs of impairment in drivers, have been more successful in reducing accidents. That includes Maximum Enforcement Periods.