State v. McDonald Provides Useful Primer on Checkpoints

The facts. A detective with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department writes a plan for a checkpoint to be conducted later in the evening. The plan states that the checkpoint will be established at the intersection of Ashley Road and Joy Street in Charlotte, NC. The plan states that the checkpoint's purpose is to increase police presence in the targeted area while checking for driver’s license and vehicle registration violations. The plan further states that all vehicles traveling through the checkpoint must be stopped unless the officer in charge determines that a hazard has developed or an unreasonable delay is occurring. If that situation arises, all vehicles must be allowed to pass through until the hazard or delay is cleared. The checkpoint is conducted from 12:34 a.m. to 1:52 a.m. on the designated evening. Every vehicle that travels through the checkpoint is stopped, and the officers ask every driver for his or her driver’s license. The question. A passenger in a car stopped at the checkpoint moves to suppress evidence obtained during the stop and subsequent search of the car, alleging that the checkpoint was unconstitutional. If you were the court, how would you rule?  The trial court denied the defendant’s motion to suppress, determining that the checkpoint did not violate the defendant’s constitutional rights.  The court of appeals, however, held today in State v. McDonald that the trial court failed to adequately determine the reasonableness of the checkpoint and remanded for additional findings.  Trial courts in addition to the one from which McDonald [...]