By Hartnett, Allen, Talton H.B. No. 263 74R370 JD-D A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-1 AN ACT 1-2 relating to the authority of the police department in certain 1-3 municipalities to establish a checkpoint on a street or highway to 1-4 determine whether persons are driving while intoxicated. 1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-6 SECTION 1. Title 116, Revised Statutes, is amended by adding 1-7 Article 6701l-8 to read as follows: 1-8 Art. 6701l-8. SOBRIETY CHECKPOINTS 1-9 Sec. 1. AUTHORIZATION FOR SOBRIETY CHECKPOINTS. In a 1-10 municipality with a population of 250,000 or more, the police 1-11 department of the municipality may establish a temporary checkpoint 1-12 on a street or highway in the municipality to determine whether 1-13 persons driving or operating motor vehicles on the street or 1-14 highway are intoxicated and in violation of Section 49.04, Penal 1-15 Code, if the governing body of the municipality has by ordinance 1-16 authorized the department to establish sobriety checkpoints in the 1-17 municipality. 1-18 Sec. 2. APPROVAL OF AND PROCEDURES FOR SOBRIETY CHECKPOINTS. 1-19 (a) A peace officer of at least the rank of lieutenant in the 1-20 police department must approve the operation of a checkpoint by 1-21 peace officers of the department and the procedures to be used in 1-22 the operation of the checkpoint before the checkpoint begins 1-23 operation. 1-24 (b) The police department must record in writing the 2-1 procedures used in selecting the site for the checkpoint and the 2-2 procedures to be used in the operation of the checkpoint. 2-3 (c) Procedures governing the operation of a checkpoint must 2-4 ensure that motor vehicles are stopped on a reasonably predictable, 2-5 nonarbitrary basis, such as by requiring that every vehicle or 2-6 every other vehicle entering the checkpoint, from one or both 2-7 directions, be stopped. 2-8 (d) The police department shall establish the location, 2-9 time, and layout of a checkpoint with regard for the safety of the 2-10 public entering the checkpoint and the peace officers operating the 2-11 checkpoint. The police department shall make reasonable efforts 2-12 to place signs or other devices to advise oncoming drivers of the 2-13 checkpoint and the purpose of the checkpoint, to demarcate the 2-14 checkpoint with flares, flags, or traffic cones, and to otherwise 2-15 illuminate the checkpoint if necessary. 2-16 (e) The peace officer who makes the initial contact with the 2-17 driver of a vehicle at the checkpoint must be in uniform. 2-18 (f) The police department shall establish procedures 2-19 governing the encounters between drivers and the peace officers to 2-20 ensure that any intrusion on the drivers is minimized and that 2-21 inquiries made are reasonably related to determining whether the 2-22 drivers are intoxicated and in violation of Section 49.04, Penal 2-23 Code. This subsection does not prohibit a peace officer from 2-24 requesting a driver to display the person's driver's license or to 2-25 furnish evidence of financial responsibility as required by law. A 2-26 peace officer may not direct a driver or a passenger in a motor 2-27 vehicle to leave the vehicle or move the vehicle off the street or 3-1 highway unless the officer has reasonable suspicion or probable 3-2 cause to believe that the person has committed or is committing an 3-3 offense. However, a peace officer may require that each motor 3-4 vehicle passing through the checkpoint be diverted to a location 3-5 immediately adjacent to the street or highway, if desirable, to 3-6 ensure safety. A peace officer may not require a driver to perform 3-7 a sobriety test unless the officer has reasonable suspicion or 3-8 probable cause to believe that the driver is violating Section 3-9 49.04, Penal Code. A peace officer who requires or requests a 3-10 driver to provide a specimen of breath, blood, or urine must comply 3-11 with Chapter 434, Acts of the 61st Legislature, Regular Session, 3-12 1969 (Article 6701l-5, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes). Unless a 3-13 peace officer has reasonable suspicion or probable cause to detain 3-14 a driver or a passenger for a criminal offense, the time during 3-15 which an officer makes an inquiry of a driver or passenger should 3-16 not exceed two minutes, and the total time during which the driver 3-17 must wait to pass through the checkpoint should not exceed 10 3-18 minutes. The police department shall make reasonable efforts to 3-19 reduce these time periods to not more than one and five minutes, 3-20 respectively. 3-21 (g) The police department shall make reasonable efforts to 3-22 publicize that it will conduct a checkpoint, but the police 3-23 department is not required to disclose the precise date, time, 3-24 purpose, or location of the checkpoint. 3-25 (h) In the absence of exigent circumstances, a police 3-26 department may not operate a checkpoint at one location for more 3-27 than four hours. In the absence of exigent circumstances, a 4-1 checkpoint may not be operated at a location more than twice in a 4-2 seven-day period. For the purposes of this subsection, checkpoints 4-3 located within one-half mile of each other are considered to be at 4-4 the same location. 4-5 (i) A police department shall keep a record of the operation 4-6 of a checkpoint that contains: 4-7 (1) the date, time, location, and duration of the 4-8 checkpoint; 4-9 (2) the number of motor vehicles stopped at the 4-10 checkpoint and the number and nature of arrests made and citations 4-11 issued at the checkpoint; and 4-12 (3) the identities of the peace officers operating the 4-13 checkpoint. 4-14 Sec. 3. DEFINITION. In this article, "street or highway" 4-15 has the meaning assigned by Section 13(a), Uniform Act Regulating 4-16 Traffic on Highways (Article 6701d, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes). 4-17 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995, and 4-18 applies only to the procedures used in the operation of public 4-19 highway checkpoints operated on or after that date. This Act does 4-20 not invalidate public highway checkpoints operated before the 4-21 effective date of this Act. 4-22 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 4-23 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 4-24 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 4-25 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 4-26 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.