Recently Cleveland suburb police have erected mock posts on the road seemingly to locate drugs hidden in passing vehicles. There was a sign on Interstate 271 notifying drivers about a roadblock ahead on which a search for drugs will be conducted (To make it look real it was mentioned that sniffing dogs would take part in the search). Drivers were asked to prepare for a full stop.
In reality, there were no posts at all but instead there were policemen who were looking for any suspicious drivers’ activity as a result of the supposed checkpoints. According to police, some drugs were found and 4 drivers were arrested.
Some civil rights activist expressed their concern about the police hoax saying it can be seen as a violation of the Fourth Amendment regarding illegal search.
In this connection, it is worthwhile mentioning that the US Supreme Court ruled in 2000 that drug checkpoints are illegal. In contrast, the assistant prosecutor of Mayfield Heights, Dominic Vitantonio, claimed that there was nothing illegal about the police mock posts. They were a vital measure in combating drug trafficking.
Source: BayouBazz