accuracy of DWI test

[tomahawk134]

I do not want beat a DEAD HORSE, the previous post are all right on the money.

Appears your friend feels he was SET UP to FAIL .......... It is amazing few people will take RESPONSIBILITY for THEIR actions. Your friend has pointed out the COP did not do this or that ......... The fact is your friend admitted to consuming alcohol. His BAC at .11 ....... Should be sufficient for a conviction.

If I was offer advise, I would tell your FRIEND to plead guilty and take responsibility for his actions.

tomwoolworth

[Johninaustin]

Welcome to "Life's Painful Lessons" :D

[scott715us]

On another note (as a DUI officer),

You do not PASS or FAIL field sobriety TASKS. You show enough CLUES OF IMPAIRMENT during these tasks to be asked to submit to breath/blood test.

Let him take his chances in court. I love it. :D

[mcsap]

Did the officer observe a violation ? Yes or No ?

Did the officer have reasonable suspicion to believe that the driver was under the influence ? Reasonable suspicion is a very low threshold to overcome.

HGN is a great test but the decision to arrest is made on a conglomeration of factors.

1. Unsafe driving = speeding . ( no matter where or when)
2. Odor of alcoholic beverages.
3. Admission to having " had a few"
4. Probably some other actions / reactions that the guy did that we don't know about.
5. Any clues that the person failed in any way a Field Test.


Again, in my state. Simply driving a vehicle here means you have ALREADY given consent to have a breath or blood test done to determine if the operator is DUI.

ALL we need is REASONABLE SUSPICION to go for the test. With all of the numbered items I listed ( I'll toss #4 since I really don't know) leaves me plenty of RS to haul someone in for a test.

Putting cuffs on someone is exactly the same as being told " you are under arrest".

He was a .11 and you ( like PA) is a .08 state.

[Legoate]

Lol...same post at the same time.

Very similar.....strange minds think alike....

I did, however, forget to use the word "asshat" anywhere in my post...I'll try to remember that next time.

[marchaa]

Appears your friend feels he was SET UP to FAIL .......... It is amazing few people will take RESPONSIBILITY for THEIR actions. Your friend has pointed out the COP did not do this or that ......... The fact is your friend admitted to consuming alcohol. His BAC at .11 .......

Tell him to plead guilty, dress up nice, and say a prayer for a miracle. He will get eaten alive in court. If he is honest..... maybe the Judge will we more forgiving. You lie to our judge and you go to jail.

[DCWoody153]

Here we go again, beating this horse.
Cop see's someone driving, too fast/too slow, draws attention to that car. There are sooooo many things that make us think the driver may have been drinking.
Cop pulls driver out, does FST's. (I routinely tell the driver he is doing fine, no matter how bad he is doing, just so he won't panic if he puts his foot down, etc.)
Cop does HGN test.....even before the guy turned his head, those pupils were probably bouncing. Blowing .11 was just the icing. Your friend was going to be found guilty before he even got to the machine.
Tell him to save a little dignity, take responsibility for his actions.

[DltUNH]

Well, I received a lot of info and I appreciate it very much. I haven't come back here in awhile due to finals, there were a few all nighters in the past few nights. Wrote two 20 page papers on a few matters of law enforcement 1) (Disproportionate Minority Contact) and (drug interdiction policies). I am now finished and am currently enjoying a celebratory Sam Adams Light for the end of my second to last semester. After seeing all of the responses with so much time elapsing I don't know where to start.

For acreature,
No he is not a police officer, but apparently the police officer told him he did fine (I'm assuming he gives you a false sense of security)

Most of you confirmed the things I thought to be the law. I will repeat what I already said to my gf, do not take it to court. I will count on her to pass the word through to her roommate who will pass it to this kid not to go.

I'll keep an update on this one as I think he may be stupid enough to bring it to court, I'm sure you'll like the entertainment if he does, again thanks for the confirmation. It goes to court sometime after the new year.

Take care

[mcsap]

I tell ALL my drunks they are doing fine ( even though they are not) so they complete all of the tests and I can later say in court that they failed 3 tests instead of one