What To Do If You Are Pulled Over In Florida For A Dui
A DUI case has four major phases
A DUI case has four major phases. The detention is the second phase. The police need three indicators of impairment to request field sobriety exercises. Common indicators are odor of alcohol, blood shot eyes, glassy/glossy eyes, fumbling or fidgeting with documents and slurred speech. Driving can be considered an indicator.
The cops always say they smell alcohol. Make sure your documents are organized. You might want to get your license, registration and insurance card in a separate wallet and place it in a readily accessible place while driving. The officers will time you, watch if you pass over a document and if you give them an expired version that is identical but for the year clearly it is because you were DUI in the eyes of the officer. Organize your documents, talk as little as possible and refuse the voluntary field sobriety exercises.
Why should you refuse the voluntary field sobriety exercises? The standard exercises are the walk and turn, one leg stand and horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN). The finger to nose is often added. The HGN is rarely admissible because the officer has to be a Drug Recognition Expert (DRE). Some case law says that training plus hundreds or thousands of DUI investigations might be enough to testify about the HGN. The other three exercises are designed to observe indicators of impairment. You can demonstrate 2 indicators on each exercise before the officer considers it sufficient to arrest you. That sounds easy but when you hear what an indicator is you will understand why the optional exercises should be refused.
On the finger to nose if you touch your nose with the pad of your finger you have demonstrated an indicator of impairment. If you do not immediately return your hand to your side after touching your nose it is considered another indicator of impairment. That would be a failure and you would be 1/3 of the way to being arrested. On the walk and turn if you start before the officer is completely done and raise your hands more than six inches for balance you fail. On the one leg stand if you sway and put your foot down or raise your hands over six inches for balance you have failed all three exercises. Making it through standing is not enough to avoid arrest. You must follow every tiny detail to prevent arrest. Therefore, in Florida, you are better off refusing the field sobriety exercises.