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Got pulled over last night

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Balt said:
I think they can politely suspend your license if you do that, though. Maybe it varies state to state, I'm not sure.
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I meant the Field Sobriety Tests like touch your nose while standing on one foot, walk in a straight line, etc. They use these test as evidence to justify giving you a blood alcohol test.


In most states by accepting a license you consent to having your blood alcohol level tested if they ask for it. You can refuse the breathalyzer but you may still be required to do a blood test if you do so. Refusing the breathalyzer can also carry its own fines and penalties.

Like you said, this can vary from state to state so check a head of time.
 
gevorg said:
What a SOAB!
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It's just another piece of the puzzle. One test doesn't make or break the whole thing.

KlokWyze said:
So could they charge you with a DUI if you failed EITHER the motor skills tests or the Breathalyzer?
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Road side breathalyzer is just a tool and the reading aren't admissible in court, at least a numerical value. Just whether it was positive or negative.

SithSolo1 said:
For future reference: You are not required by law to perform roadside sobriety tests, you can politely refuse.
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Nope, and here your license is suspended for 13 months automatically. Here you imply your consent to the tests by accepting your license.

You don't have to be a .08 to get at DUI, you have to be impaired. You can not be impaired at a .08.(never seen it but possible none the less) You can certainly be impaired at less than a .08, women typically fall in here. You have to show the driver was impaired, not just they have a certain alcohol percentage. That said, blow a .15 and just give it up.
 
boomhower said:
You don't have to be a .08 to get at DUI, you have to be impaired. You can not be impaired at a .08.(never seen it but possible none the less) You can certainly be impaired at less than a .08, women typically fall in here. You have to show the driver was impaired, not just they have a certain alcohol percentage. That said, blow a .15 and just give it up.
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I thought that anything over the "legal limit" was considered prima facie evidence of impairment, that is there is no need to prove impairment aside from measuring the BAC. But below the legal limit you can still be charged with DUI if you are impaired.
 
mugs said:
I thought that anything over the "legal limit" was considered prima facie evidence of impairment, that is there is no need to prove impairment aside from measuring the BAC. But below the legal limit you can still be charged with DUI if you are impaired.
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Varies from state to state. My state you have to show impairment separate from any "mechanical" device. Still, fact of the matter is if you blow a .08 your pretty much done.
 
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field sobriety test has gotten me out of a DUI...dunno why you guys hate them. ;P

no, i'm not proud (also wasn't drunk, but would've failed the breath test).

what does it actually take to make a typical adult male blow a .08? maybe three 'drinks,' assuming timely consumption?

edit: also i think it speaks a lot for TN that it's hard to get a DUI without being a total wasted prick. if you can follow a pen, you can go...they've got enough blind drunks in pickups to deal with, i guess.
 
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brblx said:
field sobriety test has gotten me out of a DUI...dunno why you guys hate them. ;P

no, i'm not proud (also wasn't drunk, but would've failed the breath test).

what does it actually take to make a typical adult male blow a .08? maybe three 'drinks,' assuming timely consumption?

edit: also i think it speaks a lot for TN that it's hard to get a DUI without being a total wasted prick. if you can follow a pen, you can go...they've got enough blind drunks in pickups to deal with, i guess.
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Nah, a lot more than three drinks. Figure average male with food can drink a drink an hour an be at .00. Three beers in an hour would be around an ~.04 for a 180lb male. Six drinks in two hours would be a ~.08.
 
brblx said:
field sobriety test has gotten me out of a DUI...dunno why you guys hate them. ;P

no, i'm not proud (also wasn't drunk, but would've failed the breath test).

what does it actually take to make a typical adult male blow a .08? maybe three 'drinks,' assuming timely consumption?

edit: also i think it speaks a lot for TN that it's hard to get a DUI without being a total wasted prick. if you can follow a pen, you can go...they've got enough blind drunks in pickups to deal with, i guess.
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fitting
avatar253928_5.gif
 
So OP, Which would be more frightening to you?


A - Getting pulled over by a cop after you've drinking 2-3 beers (again)

or

B - Accidently flushing your Vinyl Esselte Pendaflex pocket protector down the toilet?
 
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boomhower said:
Nah, a lot more than three drinks. Figure average male with food can drink a drink an hour an be at .00. Three beers in an hour would be around an ~.04 for a 180lb male. Six drinks in two hours would be a ~.08.
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I don't know what the heck my BAC is after 3 beers in an hour timeframe, but I would NOT want to get behind the wheel after 3. I have quite a buzz going on by then. I can still walk a straight line (tested myself out of curiosity) but the buzz is a clear warning sign.

Heck, I usually have a slight buzz going on at 2 and I wouldn't want to drive then either. Any buzz = totally no driving.
 
boomhower said:
It's just another piece of the puzzle. One test doesn't make or break the whole thing.



Road side breathalyzer is just a tool and the reading aren't admissible in court, at least a numerical value. Just whether it was positive or negative.
Wrong! both the roadside test, and breathalyzer WILL be used against you in court.


Nope, and here your license is suspended for 13 months automatically. Here you imply your consent to the tests by accepting your license.
WRONG! you consent to blood, breath, or urine. You do not have to perform tricks, or sing, and dance on the side of the road.
You don't have to be a .08 to get at DUI, you have to be impaired. You can not be impaired at a .08.(never seen it but possible none the less) You can certainly be impaired at less than a .08, women typically fall in here. You have to show the driver was impaired, not just they have a certain alcohol percentage. That said, blow a .15 and just give it up.
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There is DUI, and DWI, though rare, you can be cited for as little as .04.
If you have a prior you can be cited for as little as .02, and to make sure of the most revenue, some states have extended the probation period out to near infinity.
 
KlokWyze said:
So could they charge you with a DUI if you failed EITHER the motor skills tests or the Breathalyzer?
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Technically the whole DUI thing is a loaded 'question'. Most out on the weekend after 9pm have been drinking, many would be over the limits. Obviously this is the country as a whole and there are going to be exceptions.

The field sides are enough for a cop to make an arrest. Without a BAL though it's an easy defense in court. Blow above the limit and the way the law works is you are pretty much fucked.

The thing about the field sides is almost everyone looks 'drunk' doing them and they are filmed I think by all police now.

Also the police report write up will be very biased and weighted heavily to reflect a much worse portrayal of the incident. This is where it's the cop's word versus your's.

A typical write up:"Was behind driver approximately 1mile prior to stop. Driver kept stopping abruptly (confused/disoriented?), failed to maintain own lane (several times). As I approached the vehicle, driver looked confused, glassy eyed and had a reddish complexion.

Smell of alcohol was noted and driver noted they had been drinking (3+ drinks), asked driver to complete FST. Driver's speech was slurred and had difficulty following conversation. Had to repeat statements many times.

Driver had difficulty exiting vehicle, almost fell...driver had hard time understanding instructions and maintaining an upright posture (kept leaning left to right)."....

these always look a mess.
 
Whoozyerdaddy said:
Why would your driving record have any bearing on whether or not you're sober? That and you can't slip up on an eye test. They move in a jerky motion (sober) or they move smoothly (drunk). You don't have any control over that.

Methinks the i love you in this situation is you.
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How about we stop using 'i love you' as an insult, but otherwise whooz is right on this.
 
Cerpin Taxt said:
A very similar thing happened to me many years ago. Eventually got the field breathalyzer and I blew a 0.06. I was drinking earlier and stopped several hours before driving, like you did. I don't take risks like that anymore.
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Did they say anything about your 0.06 or set you on your merry way? I was worried that if I blew a 0.06 or something close to the limit, that if what he said was true that I was driving like shit, that I'd get hauled to jail anyway for being impaired.

But given that I was at a 0.02, I would've expected some warning about my supposedly shitty driving with swerving and crossing lane lines. None. So I'm guessing they stretched some reasons to pull me over.

CRXican said:
did you admit to drinking?

if so, that's probably why you got pulled out of the car
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Can't really do much right? I'm Asian, I glow with half a beer even if I'm not drunk. I obviously smell like alcohol given I had 3 drinks, even if my last one was over 2 hours ago. My passenger had two drinks at least that night. We were out at a club/bar. There's gotta be stuff on our clothes too. If I lied, I don't think I could get away with it. Now I might have been more firm had my last drink been at say 6pm as a glass of wine with my dinner.
 
I got trapped at a DUI checkpoint and the cop asked if I had been drinking that night. I said the truth, that I had one drink about three hours previous. He had me follow a pen light with my eyes, then sent me on my merry way.

I've asked people what they would do, and it's either telling the truth like I did or lying and saying you haven't been drinking at all, to avoid a field test (which you might fail). They justify this because you clearly knew you were under the DUI limit, so why set yourself up for failing a test even though you are sober. My feeling is you never want to lie to a cop, because you never know where the lying might lead.
 
It's best not to lie to the cop, the next question will be where did you just come from, etc.

Either choose to answer his questions or not, but lying is going to get you screwed.

Keep in mind the best advice if you know you will fail a breath test, is to refuse it.

It's a lot easier to fight that in court than if you blow a failure. There are lots of reasons one can use why they didn't want to blow. Fear of AIDS can be one. Yes, you automatically forfeit your license, but you'd do the same in a failed breathe test.

You can legally refuse field side tests as well...they are not a requirement and just extra evidence for court.
 
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