Court reins in tip-only DWI stops

Albuquerque - A DWI case in Virginia may help drunken drivers spotted by other motorists avoid being arrested in New Mexico.

Acting on a Drunk Busters tip Virginia police pulled over a driver and nailed him for DWI.

The problem? Police didn't see the driver do anything wrong and acted solely on the tip. The driver then appealed his conviction, which was overturned by Virginia's top court in a ruling the U.S. Supreme Court let stand.

New Mexico authorities say Drunk Busters, which encourages other drivers to phone in tips on suspicious driving, makes all the difference.

“If it wasn't for that call we would not know what to look for or where to look, and that can result in someone getting arrested for DWI and perhaps a life saved.” Bernalillo County Undersheriff Sal Baragiola said.

Even if they have a "good" tip, New Mexico State Police Sgt. Bruno said most officers still wait to see a violation before they pull the driver over.

“They have given us good viable information about the directionality of this vehicle, about the color, the types of violations that they are seeing," Bruno said. "It's important that the tip be very detailed.

“A lot of times people are actively following these, and they want something to be done.”

Bernalillo County deputies also build their own cases after receiving a tip, according to Baragiola.

“It doesn't have to be weaving," he said. "It could be speeding, running stop signs.

"Any traffic violation will give that officer the ability to stop them, and then at that point they can determine their sobriety.”

Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts wanted the court to hear the Virginia case; his fellow justices decided not to.

Roberts said in his dissent that he was afraid the ruling would handcuff police forcing them to give drunken drivers "one free swerve" which could get someone killed.

Baragiola says if a driver has already been reported to Drunk Busters it won't be long before the driver makes a simple mistake in front of an officer.

“For the public to think that someone is drunk, they usually are pretty drunk for them to call in," he said.

Beside Virginia courts have thrown out similar DWI cases in three other states with Drunk Busters hotlines.

New Mexico Drunk Busters takes about 1,000 calls every month over its hotline number #DWI (#394).