Mahoning OVI Task Force plans saturation patrols, sobriety checkpoint
CANFIELD, Ohio - As St. Patrick's Day approaches, drivers in Mahoning County may be seeing more of a police presence on the roads.
The Mahoning County OVI Task Force announced that the Ohio Highway Patrol and local police agencies would have saturation patrols this week through the weekend.
The annual St. Patrick's Day celebration will be held on Thursday.
The Task Force also plans to conduct a sobriety checkpoint sometime between Friday and Sunday.
Details of the exact time and location of the checkpoint will be released shortly before it begins.
In 1990 the U.S. Supreme court ruled that holding sobriety checkpoints without first notifying drivers would violate the Constitution's provision barring illegal search and seizure.
However, in their ruling, the justices did not spell out what they considered to be adequate notification.
That same year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration published recommended procedures for OVI checkpoints, including notifying the media of the planned roadblocks.
