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Wednesday, August 7, 2013
By Michael Nichols
Categories: Drunk-Driving, OWI
Thousands of motorists received an unwelcome holiday surprise from law enforcement officers over the Fourth of July holiday. Michigan law enforcement officers made a staggering 4, 434 traffic stops and 131 arrests for operating while intoxicated from July 1st to July 7th as part of the Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over crackdown coordinated by the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning (OHSP). Additionally, 45 drivers were arrested for drug-related offenses, 110 drivers were arrested as fugitives, 301 drivers were issued speeding tickets, 137 drivers were issued seat belt violation citations, and 1,393 drivers were issued other miscellaneous traffic citations. 26 counties participated in the Driver Sober or Get Pulled Over crackdown including Ingham, Wayne, Kent, Jackson, and Oakland counties.
It is important for Michigan motorists to remember that a drunk driving crackdown does not permit law enforcement officers to stop drivers sufficient legal justification. A traffic stop must be based on either reasonable, articulable suspicion that the vehicle is engaged in criminal activity or probable cause that the driver has violated the Michigan Motor Vehicle Code. If an officer does not have either reasonable, articulable suspicion or probable cause to stop a driver, all evidence flowing from the stop, including any subsequent arrests, must be suppressed.
If you need an attorney who is committed to results regardless of the reason you were stopped, contact the Nichols Law Firm at (517) 432-9000 or mnichols@nicholslaw.net