Sobriety Checkpoint Planned for Late June

On June 17, the Concord Police Dept., in conjunction with public safety officials from around Merrimack County, announced that they would be planning a sobriety checkpoint in the city of Concord during later this morning.

According to a press release sent out by Lt. Gregory Taylor, of the Planning and Analysis Unit of the Concord Police Dept., the use of sobriety checkpoints “is the most effective method of detecting and apprehending the impaired operator.”

Federal and state grant funds will help pay for the checkpoints, according to the press release. Regional police departments, including the Merrimack County Sheriff’s Office, are also involved in the effort.

Concord’s Acting-Police Chief, John Duval, answered some Concord NH Patch questions about why the checkpoint is needed and what the department hopes to gain from the effort later this month:

Q: Are incidents of impaired or drunk driving increasing in the city, holding steady, or reducing from previous years? 

A: DWI arrests in the city are down. It is impossible to determine if incidents of impaired or drunk driving have changed. We like to think that we are changing peoples behavior regarding drinking and driving, but it is very difficult to measure what we are preventing through our multi-faceted approach to addressing impaired driving.

Q: Why do public safety officials have to request court permission for this type of action? 

A: TITLE XXI MOTOR VEHICLES CHAPTER 265 RULES OF THE ROAD: Obedience to and Effect of Traffic Laws - Section 265:1-a 265:1-a Sobriety Checkpoints. – Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, no law enforcement officer or agency shall establish or conduct sobriety checkpoints for the purposes of enforcing the criminal laws of this state, unless such law enforcement officer or agency petitions the superior court and the court issues an order authorizing the sobriety checkpoint after determining that the sobriety checkpoint is warranted and the proposed method of stopping vehicles satisfies constitutional guarantees.

Q: Does the department find a higher number of incidents when the weather gets warmer versus the fall and winter months? 

A: DWI arrests are generally higher during the summer months, but this is also the time when more effort is put into enforcement action due to the weather, etc. 

Q: What do public safety officials hope to gain by the sobriety checkpoints beyond safer streets in Concord? 

A:  Sobriety Checkpoints are a high visibility, highly publicized activity. This provides a significant deterrent effect. The sheer volume of cars that can be stopped during a checkpoint (250-plus) is more than any other initiative that the Department conducts, and overall feedback on the checkpoints has been positive.  Motorists that are stopped in a checkpoint are provided a survey card regarding the checkpoint and the overwhelming majority of those returned are positive and complimentary in nature. The primary goal of this checkpoint is to promote safety on the roadways. Checkpoints are focused on identifying impaired drivers however arrests for many other offenses have been made as well to include Drug Possession, Outstanding Warrants, and Habitual Offenders/OAS.