Elements of Offense
Drivers arrested on suspicion of DUI / DWI often fear that a poor performance on a field sobriety test means an automatic conviction. However, a field sobriety test result can sometimes benefit the defense as much as the prosecution in a drunk driving case. The prosecutor will present the results as proof of mental or physical impairment. However, a skilled DUI / DWI defense lawyer from www.NotDrunk.com can use those same test results as proof that the driver wasn’t mentally or physically impaired.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has standardized three field sobriety tests – the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, the walk and turn test, and the one leg stand test. Each of these three tests has precise instructions for police to follow and an objective scoring system to assess the driver’s performance.
In addition to the three field sobriety tests standardized by the NHTSA, there are a number of non-standardized tests used in DUI / DWI investigation. These tests include the Rhomberg balance test, the ABC test, the hand-pat test, the finger-to-nose test, and the finger-tap test.
A motorist arrested for driving under the influence typically faces either two separate charges, or one charge comprised of two or more elements. The first is the “per se” allegation, which focuses on whether the driver’s blood alcohol content (BAC) was .08 percent or greater – now the legal limit in all 50 states.
The second allegation is driving under the influence or driving while intoxicated, which focuses on whether or not the driver was too impaired to drive safely. This charge is proven with circumstantial evidence of physical and mental impairment, including field sobriety tests. Although field sobriety tests are optional in most states, many officers don’t communicate that fact to drivers.
Physical and mental impairment is central to every drunk driving case. Although forensic alcohol experts differ on many facets of intoxication, all agree on certain points relating to alcohol impairment. All agree that mental impairment always occurs before physical impairment takes place.
It’s possible for individuals with a high tolerance to mask the physical impairment caused by alcohol use, but mental impairment cannot be disguised. Therefore, if the motorist displays physical difficulties, but no mental impairment, any mental impairment must come from a source other than alcohol. Because many field sobriety tests rely so heavily on physical agility, this information is extremely useful to an experienced DUI / DWI defense attorney.
Physical problems can be caused by any number of sources unrelated to alcohol use. Injuries and physical disabilities can cause a driver to perform poorly on many field sobriety tests. Fatigue also may impact the driver’s performance, as can nervousness. Being forced out of a vehicle by police often provokes the kind of nervousness that will negatively impact performance on field sobriety tests.
Regardless of how a driver feels he or she performed on a field sobriety test, a skilled drunk driving criminal defense attorney from www.NotDrunk.com will use those results to demonstrate that any impairment the driver demonstrated stemmed from sources other than alcohol.