Police stop every motorist at checkpoint to ask about a hit-and-run accident. Unreasonable seizure?

Police stopped Robert Lidster at a checkpoint set up to find information about a recent hit-and-run accident. Lidster was arrested, and later convicted, for drunk driving. Lidster successfully appealed his conviction to the Illinois Appellate Court. It relied on the U.S. Supreme Court"s decision in Indianapolis v. Edmond (2000) holding that a checkpoint is unconstitutional if its only purpose is to uncover "ordinary criminal wrongdoing." The Illinois Supreme Court affirmed. Does Indianapolis v. Edmond, which dealt with the Fourth and 14th Amendment prohibitions of unreasonable searches and seizures, prohibit checkpoints organized to question motorists about a previous offense and arrest motorists for drunk driving? No. In an opinion delivered by Justice Breyer, the Court held 6-3 that the Illinois checkpoint did not violate the Fourth Amendment"s prohibition of unreasonable searches and seizures and was constitutional. It ruled that the checkpoint was reasonable because it advanced a "grave" public interest - "investigating a crime that had resulted in a human death" - and interfered minimally with Fourth Amendment liberty. The Court distinguished Illinois"s "information-seeking" checkpoint from the "crime control" checkpoint struck down in Edmond. Justices Stevens, Souter, and Ginsburg - while agreeing that Edmond does not invalidate the Illinois checkpoint - dissented from the majority"s decision granting constitutional approval to the checkpoint. They argued that the case should have been remanded to the Illinois courts. Read the full case here: Illinois v. Lidster, 540 U.S. 419 (2004), https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/540/419/#tab-opinion-1961418 Anton Vialtsin, Esq. LAWSTACHE™ LAW FIRM | Criminal Defense and Business Law https://lawstache.com (619) 357-6677 Do you want to buy our Lawstache merchandise? Maybe a t-shirt? https://lawstache.com/merch/ Want to mail me something (usually mustache related)? Send it to 185 West F Street, Suite 100-D, San Diego, CA 92101 Want to learn about our recent victories? https://lawstache.com/results-notable-cases/ If you"d like to support this channel, please consider purchasing some of the following products. We get a little kickback, and it does NOT cost you anything extra: *Calvin Klein Men"s Dress Shirt Slim Fit Non-iron, https://amzn.to/3zm6mkf *Calvin Klein Men"s Slim Fit Dress Pant, https://amzn.to/3G8jLQG *Johnson and Murphy Shoes, https://amzn.to/3KmfX0Y *Harley-Davidson Men"s Eagle Piston Long Sleeve Crew Shirt, https://amzn.to/43gFtMC *Amazon Basics Tank Style Highlighters, https://amzn.to/3zwOEKZ *Pilot Varsity Disposable Fountain Pens, https://amzn.to/40EjSfm *Apple 2023 Mac Mini Desktop Computer, https://amzn.to/3Km2aGC *ClearSpace Plastic Storage Bins, https://amzn.to/3Kzle5q Are you are a Russian speaker? Вы говорите по-русски? https://russiansandiegoattorney.com Based in San Diego, CA Licensed: California, Nevada, and Federal Courts The San Diego-based business litigation and criminal defense attorneys at LAWSTACHE™ LAW FIRM are e...