Hualien's chief prosecutor Yang Ta-chih inflamed passions by accusing the Ministry of the Interior of "violating the constitution." Both the premier and the minister of the interior insisted that the checkpoints were perfectly legal. The ensuing constitutional debate and clash between the Minister of Justice, Chen Ding-nan, and the Chief Prosecutor are still making waves.
花蓮地檢署主任檢察官楊大智更高分貝放炮，質疑內政部此舉為「違憲」，惟行政院長、內政部長都認為，特定地點路檢並無違憲，引發了憲政層次的爭議，並進而造成法務部長陳定南和檢察官的對立，至今仍餘波盪漾。