Florida Criminal Attorney Blog

The more I think about the presence of Judges at Florida DUI Checkpoints, the more I am bothered by it. Aside from the obvious problems created when a judge becomes a witness in a case, I think the presence of judges at DUI checkpoints serves to undermine the public's confidence in the integrity and independence of the judiciary. I also think it suggests an unfair bias that favors police and may also violate individual rights to Equal Protection and access to the courts.

As a Fort Lauderdale criminal lawyer, my professional knowledge is focused on criminal law and the criminal justice system. As such, I am by no means an expert in Florida's Code of Judicial Conduct. However, I think the idea of having judges present at DUI checkpoints possibly violates three canons. They are:

Canon 1: A Judge Shall Uphold the Integrity and Independence of the Judiciary

Canon 2: A Judge Shall Avoid Impropriety and the Appearance of Impropriety in all of the Judge's Activities

Canon 3: A Judge Shall Perform the Duties of Judicial Office Impartially and Diligently

Before I delve into this subject, lets first take a moment to understand the role of a judge in the search warrant process and how that impacts DUI investigations for police.

Continue reading "Judges at Florida DUI Checkpoints? It's Worse than I Initially Thought (PART 2)" »

As a Fort Lauderdale criminal lawyer, I can tell you there is a new, disturbing trend in DUI enforcement. Namely, judges are participating in DUI checkpoints run by police. While I have not personally seen a case involving this new scenario, my understanding is that the judges are on hand to order blood draws in the event that a DUI arrestee refuses to submit to breath testing.

So far, to the best of my knowledge, this scheme has not been used in any DUI checkpoint in Broward County, Florida.

Police and prosecutors may think it is pretty smart to have a judge present at DUI checkpoints, but in truth, it is fraught with problems and in my opinion, creates a law enforcement scheme that is contrary to our legal tradition.

First and foremost, any judge present at the scene of a DUI checkpoint immediately becomes a witness. As a witness present on the scene of a DUI checkpoint, a judge may be required to testify at trial, during deposition, and certain pre-trial hearings. Judges would also be subject to cross-examination by opposing parties. Moreover, since a judge's presence at a DUI checkpoint would be known to prosecutors, the prosecution would have an affirmative duty to disclose the judge's name in their discovery submission to defense lawyers.

Continue reading "Judges at Florida DUI Checkpoints? Not a Good Idea. (PART 1)" »