The approach of New Year’s Eve means law enforcement officers throughout Florida begin to ramp up plans for DUI checkpoints that begin this weekend and continue through New Year’s Eve.

The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office announced that its Selective Traffic Enforcement Program Unit will conduct a DUI Checkpoint tomorrow, Friday, December 28, 2012 at 8:30 p.m. The DUI Checkpoint in Pasco County will take place at on Congress Street just south of Ridge Road in Port Richey, Florida.

DUI Checkpoints are the least effective way to find individuals who are driving under the influence. Dozens of officers sit at one location for 6 – 8 hours at a time. These officers are suppose to randomly select vehicles. Innocent people are unnecessarily delayed. Even if the officers manage to arrest someone for DUI, those cases are often the most scrutinized types of DUI cases because the defense attorney can contest the legality of the entire roadblock.

Click here to read more about an illegal DUI Checkpoint in Pasco County where officers in New Port Richey blatantly violated the operation plan. Instead of pulling over every third vehicle as required in the pre-determined operational plan, the officers inadvertently videotaped their misconduct.

On the video you can see the officers pulling over several cars at a time and utterly ignoring the requirements of the operational plan. Not only was our client’s case dropped right before a hearing on the motion to suppress but numerous other cases were also dropped after the illegality came to light.

We hope everyone has a happy New Year’s Eve and safe 2013.