Fort Worth police apologize for its role in federal survey
Scott Gordon, NBC 5 News
Some
drivers in North Fort Worth on Friday were stopped at police roadblock
and directed into a parking lot, where they were asked by federal
contractors for samples of their breath, saliva and even blood. The
request was part of a government research study aimed at determining the
number of drunken or drug-impaired drivers.
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Some drivers along a busy Fort Worth
street on Friday were stopped at a police roadblock and directed into a
parking lot, where they were asked by federal contractors for samples of
their breath, saliva and even blood.
It was part of a government research study aimed at determining the number of drunken or drug-impaired drivers.
"It just doesn't seem right that you
can be forced off the road when you're not doing anything wrong," said
Kim Cope, who said she was on her lunch break when she was forced to
pull over at the roadblock on Beach Street in North Fort Worth.
The National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration, which is spending $7.9 million on the survey over three
years, said participation was "100 percent voluntary" and anonymous.
But Cope said it didn't feel voluntary to her -- despite signs saying it was.
"I gestured to the guy in front that I
just wanted to go straight, but he wouldn't let me and forced me into a
parking spot," she said.
Once parked, she couldn't believe what she was asked next.
"They were asking for cheek swabs,"
she said. "They would give $10 for that. Also, if you let them take your
blood, they would pay you $50 for that."
At the very least, she said, they wanted to test her breath for alcohol.
She said she felt trapped.
"I finally did the Breathalyzer test
just because I thought that would be the easiest way to leave," she
said, adding she received no money.
Fort Worth police earlier said they
could not immediately find any record of officer involvement but police
spokesman Sgt. Kelly Peel said Tuesday that the department's Traffic
Division coordinated with the NHTSA on the use of off-duty officers
after the agency asked for help with the survey.
"We are reviewing the actions of all
police personnel involved to ensure that FWPD policies and procedures
were followed," he said. "We apologize if any of our drivers and
citizens were offended or inconvenienced by the NHTSA National Roadside
Survey."
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