Your Constitutional Rights and Responsibilities in a Preliminary DUI Investigation
Despite a decades-long DUI crackdown which began in the 1990s, alcohol still causes about a third of the fatal car crashes in Florida. As a result, many law enforcement officers feel like they have a personal mission to get “drunk drivers” off the road. Other departments emphasize DUI arrests and punish officers who don’t make enough of them. Either way, the result is that a suspicion of impairment almost always results in a DUI investigation.
Drivers have rights and responsibilities during DUI investigations. A Tampa criminal defense lawyer advocates for individual rights in court. These rights, which are outlined below, include the right to reasonable stops and the right to remain silent. Overanxious officers often make procedural mistakes during preliminary DUI investigations. These procedural mistakes become legal defenses in court. Only a Tampa criminal defense lawyer effectively uses these defenses to obtain the best possible result under the circumstances.
Fourth Amendment: Reasonable Suspicion
Officers must generally have reasonable suspicion to detain motorists. More on that below. A mere encounter and a DUI roadblock are the two biggest exceptions.
Basically, a mere encounter is a semi-benevolent traffic stop. If Tom is passed out behind the wheel and Officer Lisa taps on his window, she may not need reasonable suspicion (an evidence-based hunch) to support that stop. She’ll claim it was a routine welfare check, and most courts take officers at their word in these situations.
DUI roadblocks are legal in Florida as long as those checkpoints meet certain legal requirements. At a checkpoint, officers can detain motorists whether they have reasonable suspicion or not, as long as the checkpoint meets basic legal requirements. These rules include sufficient pre-checkpoint publicity, adequate signage, and a neutral vehicle detention formula (e.g. stopping every fourth vehicle).
However, we’re getting a bit ahead of ourselves. Usually, during an initial DUI investigation, officers look for evidence of alcohol intoxication, such as:
- Erratic driving,
- Slow reflexes,
- Odor of alcohol,
- Slurred speech, and
- Bloodshot eyes.
During an initial DUI investigation, officers just need enough evidence to proceed to the next step, which is usually administering the field sobriety tests.
For this reason, a little evidence goes a long way at this stage. Bloodshot eyes are a good example. Many things, such as allergies, fatigue, and smoke, cause bloodshot eyes. But the possibility of alcohol intoxication is there, and at this stage, that’s enough.
Fifth Amendment: Right to Remain Silent
Never teach a pig to sing. It wastes your time and annoys the pig. Similarly, never try to talk your way out of a DUI. It wastes your time, because most likely, the officer plans to arrest you and just needs evidence that’ll hold up in court. Furthermore, such banter annoys the officer. We’ve all seen what happens when edgy officers feel like they’re pushed too hard.
So, always exercise your Fifth Amendment right to remain silent. Motorists must obey basic “pull over” commands. However, they don’t have to answer questions or even roll down their windows, as long as they comply with basic commands.
A refusal to cooperate almost inevitably leads to a DUI arrest. But that probably would’ve happened anyway, as mentioned above. Furthermore, and perhaps more importantly, the less a driver says and does at the scene, the less evidence the state has in court.
Reach Out to a Savvy Hillsborough County Attorney
A criminal charge is not the same thing as a criminal conviction. For a confidential consultation with an experienced criminal defense lawyer in Tampa, contact the OA Law Firm. Virtual, home, and jail visits are available.
Source:
nhtsa.gov/risky-driving/drunk-driving
