H381 receives favorable committee report!
Raleigh (AMP) April 6, 2011

North Carolina House Bill 381, H381, titled Checking Station Pattern Selection, which most people in the motorcycling community “should” favor since it will clarify motorcycle only roadblocks (MOR) otherwise referred to as checking stations or checkpoints, are prohibited in NC was heard in Judiciary Subcommittee B yesterday, where there was a committee substitute, and received a FAVORABLE report. It is heading back to be put on the calendar for the House. I believe it will get scheduled as a 2nd Reading of the bill, and then go directly into a 3rd reading of the bill (unless the Speaker of the House does an unexpected move). It is quite possible for a motion to arise on the floor of the House to ask that the bill be scheduled for the House Transportation Committee, as a courtesy prior to any vote.

Expect it to clear the House and move to the Senate with plenty of time to meet crossover deadlines.

To see H381 Checking Station Pattern Selection and check on its’ status here is the link:
http://www.ncleg.net/gascripts/BillLookUp/BillLookUp.pl?Session=2011%20%…

For our last report on this bill, see http://boltusa.org/node/231/ NC Reduce Profiling

(AMP) Raleigh
If HB 375 passes the NC General Assembly and becomes law, those roadblocks which stop traffic and violate everyones’ rights might become just a bad memory of a state which was rapidly becoming a police state rather than a free state.
House Bill 375 introduced in the NC General Assembly by first-term representative Glen Bradley of Youngsville would clarify that checkpoints are illegal in the state. Law enforcement refers to roadblocks as checkpoints, check points, or safety checkpoints. US Supreme Court has ruled checkpoints are seizures without a warrant and without probable cause, and as such are unconstitutional in violation of the 4th Amendment of the Bill of Rights, but the court specifies there are exceptions which allow police to violate the law in the name of public safety. For example, if police received a tip that there are religious extremists with a bomb on the way to blow up a building, there may be good reason to conduct a roadblock. It would still be illegal, but it would be an allowed exception to the Bill of Rights.

Rep. Glen Bradley explains, he hands out copies of the US Constitution to police when he is stopped, saying they obviously “need them” (to know they are violating peoples’ rights). The US Constitution is law which limits the powers of government in order to preserve the rights of the people.
In the embedded video, Wake County Sheriff Harrison clearly wants to continue the rights violations, and opposes the bill. The Sheriff is in favor of continuing to accept federal funds (which come from taxpayers) to set up checkpoints.

The General Assembly will also review a much weaker bill regarding roadblocks and checkpoints. HB 381 would prevent police from setting up checkpoints in order to profile specific types of vehicles.

Make no mistake about it, those federal funds used to fund states to set up checkpoints do come from taxpayers wallets. The US House of Representatives is currently considering House Resolution HR 904 which would prevent the US Department of Transportation (DOT) from providing federal funds to create motorcycle only roadblocks (MOR).

Raleigh – Below normal rainfall has again thrust parts of central North Carolina into severe drought, and water resources officials are encouraging communities to prepare should dry conditions persist.

“At this point, public water supplies are fine in North Carolina,” said Woody Yonts, chairman of the N.C. Drought Management Advisory Council. “But if dry conditions continue to occur, widespread impacts could quickly surface in the next few months as the temperatures begin to gradually increase and the growing season begins.”

Forty-five counties are experiencing drought in North Carolina, according to Thursday’s federal drought map. Of those, 27 Piedmont counties are in severe drought, the second worst level in the four-category system used to measure drought. Thursday marks the first time since September that any part of the Tar Heel State has
experienced severe drought.
The drought map can be seen at ncdrought.org

The introduction of severe drought is based on impacts to streamflows and the flow of rain water into reservoirs – two main factors used to determine drought categories. A lack of significant rainfall in recent months has resulted in below normal groundwater levels and streamflows and less water than needed to replenish reservoirs in parts of North Carolina.

To extend available water supplies and maintain lake levels, many reservoir managers in North Carolina are only allowing minimum releases of water. It’s unusual to take such action to maintain lake levels during the winter when rainfall typically recharges North Carolina’s reservoirs, state water resources officials said.

In addition to the areas experiencing drought, 38 mountain and eastern counties are abnormally dry, according to Thursday’s drought map. Abnormally dry is not a drought category, but means drought could emerge without adequate rainfall.

NC Drought Map