Woman Has Half a Glass of Wine, .02 BAC, Gets Charged With Felony DUI.

http://www.theagitator.com/2008/04/15/w ... elony-dui/

Another reason to NEVER cooperate with the police. Be polite, be firm in saying "no," and make them respect you. You can win the dominance game by burying them in courtesy.

Just to be clear, I haven't read the statute in a while:

If you are driving or carrying, you can be required to take a test if an officer believes you may be intoxicated.

Does FST refer to a blow test, or a dexterity test?
I assume that BAT is a drawn blood test?

Do you then have the right to choose between either a dexterity test, a portable breath test, or going to the station for a needle blood test?

IANAL etc., but I understand that you can decline a field sobriety test and request another.

"Officer I am somewhat dyslexic so I can hardly recite the alphabet forwards much less backwards, is there another test I could do?"

"Officer I would balance on one foot, close my eyes, lean back and touch my nose but I have had foot surgery (pulled a muscle in my back, twisted my ankle, whatever) is there another test I could do?"

"Officer I would walk a straight line heel to toe, but I have knock knees, so I am physically not able to do that, is there another test I could do?"

The one phrase that you should at all costs avoid is any variation of "Hell I couldn't do that even if I <I>was</i> sober!"

I can't even begin to tell you how many of my clients have said that very thing. Needless to say, it makes it kind of tough to defend a case like that.

As I wrote in a past posting, refusing the balance and coordination tests is a good idea. They are very subjective and often improperly conducted, meaning the deck is even more stacked against the driver. There's no requirement that you perform them (or try to do so) so I advise people to politely decline.

As for a portable breath test ("PBT"), if you are asked to take one of these I would suggest that you do. The law allows the cops to arrest you if they have sufficient cause to ask you to take the PBT and you refuse. Besides, the results of that test cannot be used against you to prove your alcohol concentration, only whether the officer had sufficient cause to arrest you.

Here's a suggestion... don't drink and drive.

Yep. That was my suggestion right here: http://www.twincitiescarry.com/forum/vi ... 9330#99330

One of my favorites: "Of course, occifer - I already know these and will be happy to balance my alphabet backwards while touching my heel to my nose."

And they can come awfully close to doing this some times!

+1
The HCSO told me the dexterity test was mostly for the dash cam and doesnt mean much more other than having something fun to watch in court. The HCSO also said that everyone they pull over that has been drinking and they ask, "Have you had anything to drink tonight?" - the response is almost always "a couple" so they are obligated to take next steps - for public safety reasons. What I learned from that is to always reply "no" regardless. No reason to self-incriminate. One other thing, according to the HCSO, is that 1 in 10 cars on the road after mignight are driven by drunks. The lesson here is to be home by 11pm and drive where there is lots of traffic as to blend-in w/ others or as previously said, dont drink & drive.

im not as think as you drunk i am.

Just now reading the article...


Another reason not to talk to the cops...


Good to know. Her inhaler doubled her reading.

Although the reading "on the street" may be skewed if you'd just used your inhaler, or slammed a drink, or used mouthwash, or whatever, when you get to the point at the station where the "official" intox test is done, the officer will certify that he/she has observed you for at least 15 minutes. This allows time for leftovers to disipate from inside your mouth.

"Starkle, starkle, little twink,
Who the #$%@ are you? I think..."

Ewe must bee drunc!

This is why you should belch as vociferously as you can just before you blow. A burp can bring fresh alcohol from your stomach up into your esophagus and mouth, throwing the reading off, so in theory they have to wait another 15 minutes (some states it's 30 minutes) before they can make you blow again.

Once again, IANAL, YMMV and it probably is not a good idea to drink and drive.