Last week I mentioned that Utah may ban DUI checkpoints. Lawrence Taylor, an attorney in California, picked up on that development and blogged about it on his blog. He argues that the real reason that police use DUI checkpoints is to raise revenue. Most DUI checkpoints catch very few drunk drivers, but they do make a lot of money for the local government. Although the police are supposedly looking for intoxication, they end up issuing citations to drivers for not having their license, registration, insurance or for equipment violations—citations that likely would not be issued otherwise.

Let’s hope Utah joins the ranks of other states who have banned this invasive practice.