Field Sobriety Tests and Preliminary Breath Test: Navigating the Rules in Leelanau County DUI Arrests
In Leelanau County, Michigan, dealing with a drunk driving arrest is a complex process, filled with intricacies of legal procedures and rules. In a perfect world, you wouldn't have submitted to any field sobriety tests, given their predisposition to finding minor mistakes as signs of intoxication. Nonetheless, understanding how these tests work and how the officers use them to create a "totality of the circumstances" argument for intoxication is crucial for your defense.
Field Sobriety Tests: Playing by the Rules
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), only three field sobriety tests have been sanctioned, and officers are instructed to stick to these tests alone. These include the Walk and Turn Test, One-Legged Stand, and Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus.
But in Michigan, some officers tend to bend these rules. Unsanctioned tests like having the defendant sing the alphabet, count backwards, or estimate time are common. As an attorney, I go after officers for not following their own protocols, especially when these improper tests are used. If the rules aren't followed during the administration of these tests, what else could have been done incorrectly during the arrest?
Instead of challenging these extra field sobriety tests, which aren't part of the rule book, we should focus on the sanctioned tests.
Michigan Walk and Turn Test: This test requires you to walk heel to toe and turn on a clean, visible line on a level surface. But this test is easy to fail, even for sober individuals. Losing balance, starting or ending early, failing to touch heel to toe on each step, using arms for balance, stepping off the visible line, or performing an incorrect number of steps will all be counted as a failure. This test's reliability is questionable and should be critically examined.
Michigan One-Legged Stand: The officer will instruct you to stand with one leg raised about six inches off the ground for around 30 seconds. If you sway, hop, or use your arms for balance, you'll fail the test. This test is often challenging for individuals with certain physical conditions or of specific age groups, rendering its results unreliable.
Michigan Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus: This test looks for involuntary jerking of the eye, allegedly caused by the presence of alcohol in your system. However, the test's subjectivity and officers' limited training makes this test questionable. Many factors, other than alcohol consumption, could cause eye jerking.
Michigan Preliminary Breath Test (PBT): To Take or Not to Take
Along with field sobriety tests, dealing with the Preliminary Breath Test (PBT) is crucial. Police officers offer this test to justify their arrest, but you have the option to take it or decline. The penalties for refusing a PBT differ based on age: a 2-point civil infraction for those under 21, and 0 points for those over 21.
The consequences of refusing the PBT are often unclear, leading to a misconception that refusal could lead to a loss of license and 6 points on the license. However, these sanctions apply to the Datamaster, not the PBT.
The general rule of thumb is to avoid taking the PBT unless you're confident you'll pass. If you're over the limit, the officer has a solid case for a legal arrest. Without the test, the officer has to rely on subjective observations, which we can challenge effectively, particularly if you've declined the field sobriety tests.
Once the PBT is used as part of the arrest, the test is typically no longer admissible, withlimited exceptions. However, if administered and we believe it can benefit your case, we may opt to introduce the PBT results at trial. This is particularly useful when charged with a High BAC/Super Drunk offense in Michigan. Here's how it can work to our advantage:
Consider a scenario where you have a PBT result of 0.13, followed by a Datamaster result of 0.18 an hour later. We clearly see a rise in your BAC level. This information can assist us in arguing that your BAC was rising and likely below 0.17 when you were driving, closer to the 0.13 result at the scene. This kind of scenario can lead to favorable plea deals, particularly in counties that usually don't negotiate on Super Drunk cases.
There are three exceptions for introducing the PBT results at trial in Michigan:
The results may assist the court in determining a challenge to the validity of an arrest.
The defendant may offer the PBT result as evidence of their BAC to rebut testimony elicited on cross-examination of a defense witness that the defendant’s BAC was higher at the time of the offense than when a chemical test was administered.
The prosecution may introduce PBT results as evidence of the defendant’s BAC only to rebut testimony elicited on cross-examination of a prosecution witness offered to prove that the defendant’s BAC was lower at the time of the offense than when the chemical test was later administered.
To introduce the PBT into our case, we'd go for the second exception, with a crafty cross-examination of the DataMaster operator. We could also introduce the result through the prosecution’s witness. Most judges might view this as a matter of fairness; if another BAC reading might assist the jury, they may let it in.
It's crucial to remember that the PBT isn't as reliable as the Datamaster, which is tested, calibrated, and checked regularly. Many PBT devices go through long periods without calibration and can be affected by extreme weather conditions. Identifying the result and understanding how to use it to our advantage is key.
Navigating the rules around field sobriety tests and the PBT can be challenging. However, with a keen understanding of the rules and a smart defense strategy, we can question the reliability of these tests and challenge the validity of an arrest, ensuring your rights are protected in Leelanau County.
Field Sobriety Tests: Playing by the Rules
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), only three field sobriety tests have been sanctioned, and officers are instructed to stick to these tests alone. These include the Walk and Turn Test, One-Legged Stand, and Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus.
But in Michigan, some officers tend to bend these rules. Unsanctioned tests like having the defendant sing the alphabet, count backwards, or estimate time are common. As an attorney, I go after officers for not following their own protocols, especially when these improper tests are used. If the rules aren't followed during the administration of these tests, what else could have been done incorrectly during the arrest?
Instead of challenging these extra field sobriety tests, which aren't part of the rule book, we should focus on the sanctioned tests.
Michigan Walk and Turn Test: This test requires you to walk heel to toe and turn on a clean, visible line on a level surface. But this test is easy to fail, even for sober individuals. Losing balance, starting or ending early, failing to touch heel to toe on each step, using arms for balance, stepping off the visible line, or performing an incorrect number of steps will all be counted as a failure. This test's reliability is questionable and should be critically examined.
Michigan One-Legged Stand: The officer will instruct you to stand with one leg raised about six inches off the ground for around 30 seconds. If you sway, hop, or use your arms for balance, you'll fail the test. This test is often challenging for individuals with certain physical conditions or of specific age groups, rendering its results unreliable.
Michigan Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus: This test looks for involuntary jerking of the eye, allegedly caused by the presence of alcohol in your system. However, the test's subjectivity and officers' limited training makes this test questionable. Many factors, other than alcohol consumption, could cause eye jerking.
Michigan Preliminary Breath Test (PBT): To Take or Not to Take
Along with field sobriety tests, dealing with the Preliminary Breath Test (PBT) is crucial. Police officers offer this test to justify their arrest, but you have the option to take it or decline. The penalties for refusing a PBT differ based on age: a 2-point civil infraction for those under 21, and 0 points for those over 21.
The consequences of refusing the PBT are often unclear, leading to a misconception that refusal could lead to a loss of license and 6 points on the license. However, these sanctions apply to the Datamaster, not the PBT.
The general rule of thumb is to avoid taking the PBT unless you're confident you'll pass. If you're over the limit, the officer has a solid case for a legal arrest. Without the test, the officer has to rely on subjective observations, which we can challenge effectively, particularly if you've declined the field sobriety tests.
Once the PBT is used as part of the arrest, the test is typically no longer admissible, withlimited exceptions. However, if administered and we believe it can benefit your case, we may opt to introduce the PBT results at trial. This is particularly useful when charged with a High BAC/Super Drunk offense in Michigan. Here's how it can work to our advantage:
Consider a scenario where you have a PBT result of 0.13, followed by a Datamaster result of 0.18 an hour later. We clearly see a rise in your BAC level. This information can assist us in arguing that your BAC was rising and likely below 0.17 when you were driving, closer to the 0.13 result at the scene. This kind of scenario can lead to favorable plea deals, particularly in counties that usually don't negotiate on Super Drunk cases.
There are three exceptions for introducing the PBT results at trial in Michigan:
The results may assist the court in determining a challenge to the validity of an arrest.
The defendant may offer the PBT result as evidence of their BAC to rebut testimony elicited on cross-examination of a defense witness that the defendant’s BAC was higher at the time of the offense than when a chemical test was administered.
The prosecution may introduce PBT results as evidence of the defendant’s BAC only to rebut testimony elicited on cross-examination of a prosecution witness offered to prove that the defendant’s BAC was lower at the time of the offense than when the chemical test was later administered.
To introduce the PBT into our case, we'd go for the second exception, with a crafty cross-examination of the DataMaster operator. We could also introduce the result through the prosecution’s witness. Most judges might view this as a matter of fairness; if another BAC reading might assist the jury, they may let it in.
It's crucial to remember that the PBT isn't as reliable as the Datamaster, which is tested, calibrated, and checked regularly. Many PBT devices go through long periods without calibration and can be affected by extreme weather conditions. Identifying the result and understanding how to use it to our advantage is key.
Navigating the rules around field sobriety tests and the PBT can be challenging. However, with a keen understanding of the rules and a smart defense strategy, we can question the reliability of these tests and challenge the validity of an arrest, ensuring your rights are protected in Leelanau County.
