Today, the Utah House of Representatives passed a bill to prohibit the police from conducting DUI checkpoints. The Utah State Senate must also pass HB140, and then the governor would need to sign it for it to become law.

Police use DUI checkpoints by placing roadblocks on a public roadway and then they stop every vehicle or random cars and look for signs of alcohol or other impairment. The Utah bill would not affect law enforcement’s ability to look for fugitives, such as during an Amber Alert, nor would affect their ability to look for “invasive species.”

The United States Supreme Court deemed random DUI checkpoints as constitutional in the case Michigan Dept. of State Police v. Sitz. Michigan’s high court then found such checkpoints to be illegal under Michigan’s Constitution. Several other states have banned them as well.

UPDATE: HB140 never made it out of the Utah State Senate, so as of the close of the 2012 legislative session, Utah remains one of the states that allow DUI checkpoints.