By Pierce Blitch
A group of police officers are standing at a DUI roadblock in a common area of travel after First Friday in downtown Augusta, Georgia. As a result, traffic is backed up as the officers ensure that each driver that passes through is not under the influence.
One driver, who is in a hurry to get home, abruptly turns around upon seeing the roadblock to find a detour around the roadblock to get home more quickly. The officers notice the driver turn around and drive away from the roadblock. This makes the officers suspicious that the driver is possibly under the influence, so one of the officers gets in a police cruiser and stops the driver. Is the stop itself lawful?
The Fine Line Between Normal Driving and Suspicion
While normal driving to avoid a roadblock doesn’t justify a stop, an abrupt turn may give officers reasonable suspicion of potential criminal activity. Courts lean heavily on the subjective impressions of the officers involved at the scene.
Defining “Furtive” Driving
The term “furtive” describes actions done in secret or stealth. But what constitutes furtive driving? Couldn’t the sudden stop in the above hypothetical be an innocent act of seeing a detour to get home more quickly?
Roadblocks and Constitutional Concerns
Judicially, roadblocks themselves are suspicious as they infringe on free movement without specific wrongdoing suspicion. This hypothetical highlights how a simple decision to avoid a roadblock can lead to a stop if officers describe the maneuver with terms like “sudden,” “sharp,” or “furtive.”
Officers and Their “Magic Words”
The ruling suggests officers who articulate specific terms to describe a driver’s actions can justify stops. Without objective evidence like video recordings, courts rely on officer testimony unless a pattern of deception is proven.
Implications for Drivers
Courts’ stances on roadblocks offer limited protection to drivers against improperly executed roadblocks. Roadblocks often lack proper signage or cones, sometimes appearing as accident scenes. It’s reasonable for a driver to avoid such setups, yet this can be used to justify a stop.
The Unseen Record
Stops where no criminal activity is found don’t leave records for courts to recognize non-incriminating stops. Despite later evidence of impairment, the initial stop was based on officers’ suspicion, not evidence.
This hypothetical underscores the file line officers walk between lawful stops and unjustified hunches. It calls for greater scrutiny and objective evidence in justifying stops at roadblocks.
This case underscores the fine line officers walk between lawful stops and unjustified hunches. It calls for greater scrutiny and objective evidence in justifying stops at roadblocks.
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