slimvictor
Bluelight Crew
The roadblocks went up on a Friday at several points in two Alabama towns, about 40 miles on either side of Birmingham.
For the next two days, off-duty sheriff's deputies in St. Clair County, to the east, and Bibb County, to the southwest, flagged down motorists and steered them toward federal highway safety researchers. The researchers asked them a few questions about drinking and drug use and asked them for breath, saliva and blood samples -- offering them $10 for saliva and $50 to give blood.
It's not just in Alabama. The roadblocks are part of a national study led by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is trying to determine how many drivers are on the road with drugs or alcohol in their systems. Similar roadblocks will be erected in dozens of communities across the nation this year, according to the agency.
It's been going on for decades. Previous surveys date to the 1970s. The last one was run in 2007, and it included the collection of blood and saliva samples without apparent controversy, sheriff's spokesmen in both Alabama counties said.
But this time, it's happening as the Obama administration struggles to explain revelations that U.S. spy organizations have been tracking phone and Internet traffic. Against that backdrop, the NHTSA-backed roadblocks have led to complaints in Alabama about an intrusive federal government.
Gov. Robert Bentley complained that his office had not been notified that the surveys were going to be conducted. Speaking on a Birmingham radio show, Bentley, a Republican, said the stops were "bad timing" after the NSA revelations and in light of recent complaints about the Internal Revenue Service subjecting conservative groups that applied for tax exemptions to additional scrutiny.
Bentley spokesman Jeremy King said the governor's office "is working to find out exactly what took place during those surveys."
"We just want to make sure the rights of our citizens are protected," King said.
And Susan Watson, executive director of the Alabama chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, called the use of deputies to conduct the survey an "abuse of power." Even though the survey is voluntary, people still feel they need to comply when asked by a police officer, she said.
"How voluntary is it when you have a police officer in uniform flagging you down?" Watson asked. "Are you going to stop? Yes, you're going to stop."
The agency said in a statement that the survey provides "critical information" to reduce drunken or drugged driving.
cont at
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/06/19/us/drug-survey-roadblocks/?hpt=us_c1
For the next two days, off-duty sheriff's deputies in St. Clair County, to the east, and Bibb County, to the southwest, flagged down motorists and steered them toward federal highway safety researchers. The researchers asked them a few questions about drinking and drug use and asked them for breath, saliva and blood samples -- offering them $10 for saliva and $50 to give blood.
It's not just in Alabama. The roadblocks are part of a national study led by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which is trying to determine how many drivers are on the road with drugs or alcohol in their systems. Similar roadblocks will be erected in dozens of communities across the nation this year, according to the agency.
It's been going on for decades. Previous surveys date to the 1970s. The last one was run in 2007, and it included the collection of blood and saliva samples without apparent controversy, sheriff's spokesmen in both Alabama counties said.
But this time, it's happening as the Obama administration struggles to explain revelations that U.S. spy organizations have been tracking phone and Internet traffic. Against that backdrop, the NHTSA-backed roadblocks have led to complaints in Alabama about an intrusive federal government.
Gov. Robert Bentley complained that his office had not been notified that the surveys were going to be conducted. Speaking on a Birmingham radio show, Bentley, a Republican, said the stops were "bad timing" after the NSA revelations and in light of recent complaints about the Internal Revenue Service subjecting conservative groups that applied for tax exemptions to additional scrutiny.
Bentley spokesman Jeremy King said the governor's office "is working to find out exactly what took place during those surveys."
"We just want to make sure the rights of our citizens are protected," King said.
And Susan Watson, executive director of the Alabama chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, called the use of deputies to conduct the survey an "abuse of power." Even though the survey is voluntary, people still feel they need to comply when asked by a police officer, she said.
"How voluntary is it when you have a police officer in uniform flagging you down?" Watson asked. "Are you going to stop? Yes, you're going to stop."
The agency said in a statement that the survey provides "critical information" to reduce drunken or drugged driving.
cont at
http://edition.cnn.com/2013/06/19/us/drug-survey-roadblocks/?hpt=us_c1
