et al. Michigan Department of State Police v. Sitz

In Michigan's case, an advisory committee consisting of both law enforcement and civilian transportation experts met to set specific guidelines for the location, techniques used, and advance publicity about a sobriety checkpoint program. These were cautiously devised parameters that tried to follow constitutional precedents, after the committee members had examined the elements of others states' sobriety checkpoints that had been declared illegal by the courts. A computer was utilized to pinpoint state roads with high alcohol-related accident statistics, and on a rainy night in May of 1986 the State Police conducted a 75-minute checkpoint on Dixie Highway in Saginaw County.

For the 126 vehicles that came through the checkpoint, the average delay was 25 seconds. Drivers were briefly appraised for signs of intoxication by means of innocuous conversation. If a driver was suspected of intoxication, he or she was directed to another nearby spot off the highway, where their license and registration were requested and examined by another officer; this officer could also conduct further sobriety tests. Of the 126 drivers, two were detained, and one of those two was found to be driving under the influence of alcohol. A third driver attempted to drive through the checkpoint, but was pursued and found to be intoxicated.