City of Las Cruces v. Betancourt3/5/1987
or to the initial stop. Accordingly, affirmance or reversal of his conviction depends entirely upon the constitutionality of the initial stop at the roadblock.
This is not true of Betancourt's appeal. The facts recited above show that Officer Childress possessed sufficient articulable facts upon which to stop her and probable cause to believe that she was driving while intoxicated. See Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1, 88 S. Ct. 1868, 20 L. Ed. 2d 889, (1968); State v. Luna, 93 N.M. 773, 606 P.2d 183 (1980). Accordingly, we affirm the denial of her motion to suppress evidence. State v. Beachum, 83 N.M. 526, 494 P.2d 188 (Ct. App.1972) (trial court will be affirmed on appeal if right for any reason).
ISSUE NO. 1
It is beyond question that stopping motorists for the purpose of detecting and apprehending drunk drivers constitutes a "seizure" under the fourth amendment. E. g., Ingersoll v. Palmer, 184 Cal. App.3d 1198, 221 Cal.Rptr. 659 (1985), review granted, 224 Cal. Rptr. 719, 715 P.2d 680 (1986); State v. Deskins, 234 Kan. 529, 673 P.2d 1174 (1983); Webb v. State, 695 S.W.2d 676 (Tex.Cr. App.1985). See also Delaware v. Prouse, 440 U.S. 648, 99 S. Ct. 1391, 59 L. Ed. 2d 660 (1979); United States v. Martinez-Fuerte, 428 U.S. 543, 96 S. Ct. 3074, 49 L. Ed. 2d 1116 (1976). The essence of the fourth amendment prohibition against unreasonable searches and seizures is to safeguard the privacy and security of individuals against arbitrary invasion by governmental officials by imposing a standard of reasonableness upon the exercise of those officials' discretion. Deskins. Thus, we hold that a roadblock is not per se violative of the fourth amendment when motorists are stopped without probable cause or a reasonable suspicion, but, rather, we believe the question of whether a particular roadblock violates the fourth amendment is basically one of reasonableness. See People v. Bartley, 109 Ill.2d 273, 93 Ill. Dec.347, 486 N.E.2d 880 (1985); People v. Scott, 63 N.Y.2d 518, 483 N.Y.S.2d 649, 473 N.E.2d 1 (1984).
However, because " o right is held more sacred * * * than the right of every individual to the possession and control of his own person, free from all restraint or interference," Union Pacific Railway Co. v. Botsford, 141 U.S. 250, 251, 11 S. Ct. 1000, 1001, 35 L. Ed. 734 (1891), the reasonableness of any roadblock will be very closely scrutinized. In determining whether a roadblock is reasonable within the meaning of the fourth amendment, we must balance the gravity of the governmental interest or public concern served by the roadblock, the degree to which it advances these concerns and the severity of the interference with individual liberty, security, and privacy resulting from the roadblock. Ingersoll; Bartley; Deskins; Webb.
The need to deter, detect and remove drunk drivers from the public highways weighs heavily in favor of the state. Ingersoll; Bartley; Deskins; Scott. We need not recite the tragic figures involving the carnage caused by drunk drivers on our highways. See Ingersoll; Bartley. There can be no doubt that the threat posed by drunk drivers to public safety is so great that any reasonable efforts utilized by the state to deter, detect and remove them from the highways will be upheld by this court.
While no New Mexico cases have dealt with sobriety roadblocks, three cases have considered roadblock checks of driver's license and vehicle registration. See State v. Bloom, 90 N.M. 192, 561 P.2d 465 (1977); State v. Bidegain, 88 N.M. 466,
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