The State - News from Sept. 8, 1985

Roadblocks set up to catch drunk drivers are unconstitutional, an appellate panel of the Orange County Superior Court has ruled. In a 2-1 decision handed down without comment, the panel upheld a January ruling by North Orange County Municipal Judge Betty Elias that said checkpoints set up in Anaheim during Christmas, 1984, violated the constitutional protection against unreasonable search and seizure. The impact of the decision, however, was unclear and Anaheim police said they may go ahead with checkpoints planned for Thanksgiving. American Civil Liberties Union attorney Joan Howarth, whose organization has opposed the roadblocks, said the decision is the first California case in which a motorist has successfully challenged the constitutionality of the policy.