Police officers will often set up DUI or sobriety checkpoints at various points along the highway. They do so in order to catch potential offenders and remove them from the road.
But what can you do if you see a sobriety checkpoint up ahead? Must you go through it no matter what, or do you have an alternate option?
Illegal moves to avoid
LifeSafer discusses your potential options if you spot a sobriety checkpoint ahead. Of course, you do always have the option of simply proceeding through the checkpoint. Officers will scan all cars that go through, deciding which ones to pull over at random and/or based on whether they feel a driver displayed obvious signs of breaking road rules.
However, you also have the option of turning away from the checkpoint and finding an alternative route to get to your destination instead.
The one important thing to keep in mind is that you must do so in a legal way. In other words, no making illegal U-turns, no cutting off other vehicles, no reckless driving, no speeding, no driving over solid lines, and so on.
Can you get pulled over?
An officer can also potentially pull you over for any other infraction too, which can include simply having expired plate stickers or broken tail light.
If they pull you over for this and then find a reason to suspect you hit the road while intoxicated, they can then proceed to ask for you to take a DUI test, thus nullifying the original intention of avoiding the DUI checkpoint in the first place.
In short: you can go through a checkpoint, or you can turn away, but you can only turn away if it is safe and legal to do so.
