DWI Field Sobriety Tests? Should You Ever Take Them? A Former Prosecutor Explains! (2021)

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  • เผยแพร่เมื่อ 7 ก.ย. 2024

ความคิดเห็น • 79

  • @johnlary8792
    @johnlary8792 2 ปีที่แล้ว +52

    I am a physician who has testified for many DUI/DWI defendants. In north Alabama, whenever an officer asks you to perform a field sobriety test he has already decided to arrest you and is just looking for evidence to use against you.

    • @moneybutter
      @moneybutter ปีที่แล้ว +1

      I have been saying the say thing for years. I have no experience in this field like you do…. Thank you for the comment

    • @darthxeno3434
      @darthxeno3434 2 หลายเดือนก่อน

      Well if people didn’t drink or use drugs and then go and drive we wouldn’t be in the situation

    • @jmw4455
      @jmw4455 23 วันที่ผ่านมา

      If you had a brain you wouldn't be a moron​@@darthxeno3434

    • @amyerwin7958
      @amyerwin7958 18 วันที่ผ่านมา

      @@darthxeno3434You missed the point of the video. You can be stone sober and do yoga 3 times a week and still fail these tests.

    • @darthxeno3434
      @darthxeno3434 18 วันที่ผ่านมา

      @@amyerwin7958 many many many people pass these tests…. don’t drink and drive and you won’t have to do them…. Don’t do drugs and be impaired and you won’t have to do them….. don’t take medication that clearly says you shouldn’t be driving and you won’t have to do them…

  • @barbarajansen4912
    @barbarajansen4912 หลายเดือนก่อน +5

    The test was made for acrobats and if you're a senior you're shit out of luck entirely.
    I was stopped because I had a light out on my license plate. The cop came by and said do you know why I stopped you and then told me. Then he asked me for my license and registration. I gave it to him. he went back to his vehicle. Came back five minutes later, handed me my license and registration, which I asked him. What do you want me to do now? he told me to get the light fixed to which I said thank you. I exchanged a few nice words because for a Massachusetts police officer he seemed very nice compared to all the ones I've met in the past who stopped me for no reason other than I was driving late at night. After we exchanged a few words, he asked me for my license and registration back and took it with him to his cruiser and came back and asked me to step out of the car. He told me my eyes were glazed, and my speech was slurred. That was a lie because I don't drink, but I went to Chinese restaurant had a bowl of soup and a glass of water. He just wanted somebody to pull revenue collecting agency as a 69 year old woman. I was unable to do that sobriety test. I told him look I'm not an acrobat. I can't do this and I don't know anybody that can do this. So then he told me I had to go get a breathalyzer. He slapped handcuffs on me and escorted me into the cruiser impounding my car. After arriving at the station, I was asked to barrage of standardized questions that included do I feel like committing suicide. meanwhile they have a history of my driving record and there is no record of me ever being pulled over for a DWI ever. Can they administered the breathalyzer test which took them seven tries before they got some sort of a reading. He looked a little disappointed when he saw that I blew a 0.0.. apparently I couldn't be arrested. Couldn't post bail. And was free to go as if they were doing me a big favor. This is Elder abuse administering tests to not even able body people can do.
    I'm not done with that police station. My mission is to change the laws about these tests. Everybody is going to get a certified letter. And I'm going to write as many of these, as I can to as many people as I can that are in positions to make decisions, I urge everybody to do the same..

    • @Barbarus1
      @Barbarus1 14 วันที่ผ่านมา

      Many of the so called "drunk" drivers that get arrested aren't drunk at all. Its just that the courts and the politicians have bent the knee to appease MADD and the police who profit from drunk driving hysteria. A DUI used to be a BAC above .10 or higher. Then the laws got changed to withhold federal highway dollars from states that didn't raise the drinking age to 21 and lower BAC to .08 (Which for many people isn't impaired depending on their body composition). About 20 years ago states started charging people with nonsense misdemeanors for DWAI and "less safe dui" with a BAC as low as .05 (1-2 beers for the average person). And now in many jurisdictions we are seeing "Drug whisperers" and cops like these just arresting innocent people to get a stat. Because regardless of if there is a conviction or not cops get awards and recognition for arrests.

  • @sanjosemike3137
    @sanjosemike3137 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    I am a physician and surgeon who has operated the legs, ankles and feet of hundreds of patients of many different ages over a period of 26 years. I have also performed gait analyses for patients to determine the types of diagnoses for evaluation and procedures I might have to perform, and physical devices and braces I would order for them.
    People vary enormously on their abilities to balance themselves, with various lack of co-ordination issues that have nothing to do with alcohol intake. I am now 80- years old myself. I would NEVER have the co-ordination I had when I was a younger man.
    Even if I were stone cold sober for a 48-hour period prior to being asked to perform these tests, I would refuse each of them.
    I am capable of safely operating a motor vehicle. I never, ever drink alcohol and drive. But at age 80, it is more than likely I would FAIL at least one of more of these tests.
    Sanjosemike (no longer in CA)
    Retired surgeon

    • @JAM661
      @JAM661 6 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

      Well I read somewhere that a 70 year is doing good if they can balance on one foot for 10 seconds. But what does balance have anything to do with driving. But at 62, 4 back surgeies and a partically numb foot and 2 knee a surgeries I am not passing it either.

  • @guyray1504
    @guyray1504 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    I just watched a Lt. policeman get stopped and checked for DUI. The cop giving the test was trying to show him what he wanted him to do and the cop giving it couldn't do it. The Lt. called him on it and he made up something and the Lt. getting tested just laughed at him. The Lt. was still arrested.

  • @davidphipps1044
    @davidphipps1044 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I did my first test last week in Upstate New York. I was nice, courteous to the officer. Let him know this was exciting and I was up for the challenge. I passed the pen test and then the officer didn't even give me a speeding ticket afterwards. Just a ticket for having a licence plate frame, lol.

  • @northernbrother1258
    @northernbrother1258 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    You don't have to explain why you're refusing...the less you say the better!

  • @WayTruthLife2100
    @WayTruthLife2100 2 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    Excellent video! Thorough and advice you can count on.

  • @patrickleckie6697
    @patrickleckie6697 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I was stopped and given field tests .i asked for a blood test and was told i needed $50 to pay for it.

  • @johns280
    @johns280 2 หลายเดือนก่อน

    An officer asked me if I had anything to drink. I told her it was a trick question. I “drink” from when I get up in the morning until I go to bed.

  • @charliestokes4520
    @charliestokes4520 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Best way to avoid failing SFSTs? Don’t drive intoxicated

    • @JuarezDerrick
      @JuarezDerrick ปีที่แล้ว +1

      Another way is not to take one

  • @paulthomasshepherd5156
    @paulthomasshepherd5156 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    If the 5th Amendment protects me from self incrimination then how can I be forced to do a walk-the-line test or anything like it that offers self incrimination findings.

  • @lindastamper3822
    @lindastamper3822 ปีที่แล้ว +5

    I couldn’t pass it and I don’t drink lol

  • @fixerson-9089
    @fixerson-9089 2 ปีที่แล้ว +4

    So is the answer to title of video , NO do not ever take field sobriety tests. Because then all the police will do is say your under arrest for not taking the tests.

    • @mehardin
      @mehardin ปีที่แล้ว +9

      If they are asking you to take the test they are going to arrest you either way. The point of refusing the tests is to give them less evidence against you in court, not to prevent arrest.

  • @kylen9954
    @kylen9954 ปีที่แล้ว +12

    A good rule of thumb is whenever you see a LEO just remind yourself "They're a piece of shit" and you'll be fine

    • @NoCopyrightMusicsss
      @NoCopyrightMusicsss ปีที่แล้ว

      they're a piece of shit with the power to fuck your life up. be tactful, treat the officer like a human and talk like your lawyer is watching

    • @carfo
      @carfo ปีที่แล้ว +3

      that's a pretty terrible rule. and not all LEO are out to get everyone. don't drink and drive if you're intoxicated. if you do, you're a piece of...

    • @sentientnatalie
      @sentientnatalie ปีที่แล้ว

      @@carfo I agree with not driving while intoxicated, it's just not safe. However, cops are rewarded for bodies, arrests, tickets, and punished for failure to accumulate these things. Also, you don't know which cops are out to get you and which aren't, how could you know? None of us could, best to play it safe, assume that badges are up to no good. They are agents of the capitalist state, after all. Gotta keep that sweet, sweet prison-industrial complex turning over, you know?

  • @Myclassicalrecording
    @Myclassicalrecording 9 หลายเดือนก่อน +1

    Should you refuse a breath test in all cases, even when you have not been drinking?

  • @randallsmerna384
    @randallsmerna384 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    But what about states other than Texas?
    What should you look for in your state to decide what to do?

  • @karincampbell9289
    @karincampbell9289 4 หลายเดือนก่อน

    I can’t do the walk and turn or one leg stand test completely sober! I have bad hips, and feet, and I’ve done it at home and can’t do it well. I’d be so screwed! I’d just tell them I have a brain injury and hope for the best. And I never drink and drive

  • @keneaton2855
    @keneaton2855 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    If you are over 70 yrs old the field test is inadmissible

  • @pharynx007
    @pharynx007 ปีที่แล้ว

    before i knew it was possible to even decline them, i got pulled over for going a few miles over the speed limit at like, 1 am, and was asked to do the eye test. i think he breathalyzed me too actually. i had very blood shot eyes apparently, but i was just suffering from severe caffeine withdrawal, and was heading out to get my fix and some lunch, cause i was working the night shift at that time. ironically enough, as police on my navy ship. (this was on base too)
    but i was stone cold sober, i had just been awake playing video games all "morning" and hadn't eaten anything yet.

  • @b1lyb
    @b1lyb ปีที่แล้ว

    My wife has osteopenia. She has been told by her Dr. not to ride a bike. If she fell, she would be at high risk of breaking her hip. Broken hips are life altering events for older women, including shortened life expectancy because of complicating issues. She should never to the walking test and risk falling. Are police taught about the risk of falling and possible permanent injury while taking these tests ?

  • @zackittup
    @zackittup 24 วันที่ผ่านมา

    Omg it’s Jeff on a different channel!

  • @videomaniac108
    @videomaniac108 6 หลายเดือนก่อน

    I'm 72 years old and don't drink or take any drugs and I am unable to successfully perform the walk and turn and one-legged tests.

    • @JAM661
      @JAM661 6 หลายเดือนก่อน

      Basically a 70 year is not expected to do the one foot balance test for more then 10 seconds. Opps The test may have been more accurate when we were all in shape working on farm but many American are really not in the best of shape. Weight has effect on the test also.

  • @shamusfarmer
    @shamusfarmer 2 ปีที่แล้ว +3

    I appreciate you answering my previous question, but now Ive got another one. I saw some nonfictional police situation on TV where they were looking for a kidnapped/murdered girl. They had set up a road block and we're asking every single driver to let the cops see inside their trunk. They claimed that they didn't care whatever else they might find in there, even if it's drugs! They were ONLY interested in finding this girl's body. Is that true?? Under extreme circumstances like that would they really let you go even if they found a bunch of cocaine or whatever in your car instead??

    • @fulghamlawfirm2254
      @fulghamlawfirm2254  2 ปีที่แล้ว +4

      NO! the police must have probable cause to search your vehicle. They can't just set up roadblocks and search someone's car without probable cause

    • @WayTruthLife2100
      @WayTruthLife2100 2 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Not only exactly what the attorney answered below, but police are legally allowed to lie to you!
      If you opened your trunk because they asked you to, that is on you. It is your choice to open or to leave it shut UNLESS they have reasonable and articulable suspicion that you are involved in the crime that they are investigating.
      If you break the law and the police see contriband in the open with plain sight, you will be charged for those offenses. They have a duty to uphold the law and take an oath to honor it (although not all cops honor that very precious oath; in fact many choose to do what makes them feel good at that moment and time according to their personal beliefs, not the law of the land).
      Always choose to use the rights that so many men and woman have fought and died to protect for us!
      Police will be pushy. Record your interaction, regardless of a police worn body camera. Those (videos) can be lost, tampered with, information redacted, and refused to be released and/or held (not released upon submission of a FOIA) until an investigation (for bad behavior or ?) has closed. Always record your police interactions. It is your right.
      Use it or lose it ...
      Don't get me wrong, there still are a few great cops out there. Many have been brainwashed and or corrupted by police culture. Adding to that, they don't get the education needed to interpret law, this interpret it wrong. Often times, and a sad truth is that many good cops are forced out and the horrible ones raise in rank, thus the current crisis of the police state we are attempting to live (or die) in.

    • @shamusfarmer
      @shamusfarmer 2 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@WayTruthLife2100 you're right, you're right... They can and do lie to people all the time. That being said, suppose you had absolutely nothing to hide and nothing in your car that you could possibly get in trouble for. Would you let them look under those circumstances?

    • @randallsmerna384
      @randallsmerna384 ปีที่แล้ว +2

      @@shamusfarmer
      NO, NO, NO! NEVER Let them get their foot in the door! You're assuming that the police are going to behave righteously and uphold the law, but what if there was a bad one that increase his arrest rates and so he plants drug evidence in your trunk? You can deny it all you want but the courts are going to believe the cop not you! Why would you ever open yourself up to that possibility when you have the opportunity to shut it down?

    • @bbigrocker1
      @bbigrocker1 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      NEVER TRUST A WORD A COP SAYS. You want to search MY car, GET A WARRANT

  • @timallison8560
    @timallison8560 9 หลายเดือนก่อน

    no.

  • @WayneKeen
    @WayneKeen 2 ปีที่แล้ว +2

    If I have had nothing to drink (SOP for me), but I am old, fat with arthritis and poor balance, should I tell the officer this, and indicate a willingness to take a breath test?

    • @MuzixMaker
      @MuzixMaker ปีที่แล้ว

      Never volunteer to do anything. Make them arrest you.

  • @queensapphire7717
    @queensapphire7717 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    What about from MS ? I have crazy nystagmus

  • @frankmontez6853
    @frankmontez6853 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    I’m thinking of plea bargain my dwi case. It will count as first dwi even though my dwi conviction is before 1994 that’s when the law changed ? My case is quite advanced and have a pre trial hearing that means that I must decide to fight it or plea bargain. Have second thoughts on plea bargain because it might make it harder to defend a subsequent dwi arrest ?

    • @dreareed1573
      @dreareed1573 2 หลายเดือนก่อน

      How did it go?

    • @frankmontez6853
      @frankmontez6853 2 หลายเดือนก่อน

      @@dreareed1573 it went well as can be expected. No fines , court costs . Just had to report by mail for only six months . It did count as first time. Also had a great lawyer. The law changed in 1994 no convictions will count before then . But the lawyer I used said no it didn’t change and they probably “ slipped “ up . No I read the law and the law changed in 1994 .

  • @JohnDoe-jn4ex
    @JohnDoe-jn4ex ปีที่แล้ว

    Yup, good luck 🤞

  • @bruceallen461
    @bruceallen461 ปีที่แล้ว

    How cops use their flashlight.

  • @bruceallen461
    @bruceallen461 ปีที่แล้ว

    I like to stargaze and I struggle to keep my balance.

  • @shari-gl1hm
    @shari-gl1hm ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Drunk in leopard suit refusing alcohol sobriety test.

  • @Tranic85
    @Tranic85 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Why is starting a test too “soon” always a strike against you? I know myself enough that I’d be wanting to just get the test done over with ASAP.

    • @fulghamlawfirm2254
      @fulghamlawfirm2254  2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      they claim it is a strike against you because you didn't "follow instructions"

    • @randallsmerna384
      @randallsmerna384 ปีที่แล้ว

      It lends itself to the idea that you are too intoxicated to pay attention, and to following the directive.
      If you watch some of these feel sobriety tests you'll see the cop say "stand on one leg and lift the other leg out in front of you. Stare at your leg and when I say GO you will count 1 one thousand, 2 one thousand, starting at 7 and go until I tell you to stop." You may lift your leg up and start counting "One, Two, and so on." You may count perfectly but you've already failed for many reasons:
      1) You started before he said "GO".
      2) You didn't start on 7.
      3) You didn't say "one thousand" after each number.
      4) You stopped to ask if that was enough.
      And then God help you if you put your foot down while you're doing it...
      Of course field sobriety tests will likely help identify drunk drivers but it is also unequivocally used to arrest someone who isn't. And maybe it'll get thrown out after a blood draw or a breathalyzer is done at the station but by that time you've been inconvenienced, you've been arrested, you've been humiliated, and your car's been towed - and they will not compensate you for any of that. And that's if they release you at the station. If they don't then you're going through court. Even if your blood passes it could take weeks for the blood test results to get back. Then you've got attorneys fees, time off work, the aggravation and humiliation and stress on relationships and at your job...
      All this guy is saying is don't help them with their investigation and their end goal to arrest you. Make them work for it.
      And yes, they do have a goal because they have a quota. And they have a quota because police departments are federally funded by the number of arrests that are made. They report those statistics every year. That's why the incentive for cops is to escalate every encounter to an arrestable offense. Cops are not interested in protecting your constitutional rights First and foremost because those pesky Constitutional rights get in the way of padding their arrest numbers.
      Even good cops working for this corrupt type of setup will eventually behave this way creating good cops who make bad choices and questionable arrests in order to fund their department. It's sick.
      The same thing has happens with hospitals and COVID. The hospital gets way more money if they treat more COVID. As the COVID treatments go up and the gravity of the illness escalates, so does their compensation. They get a shit-ton of money for getting somebody on ventilator. So what do you know, they'll do everything they can to make sure you get on a ventilator even delaying treatments and/or poo pooing other claimed treatments like ivermectin.
      Depending on the number and level of COVID treatments, The hospital can make as much as $400,000 per patient if said patient actually dies in their care after having been put on a ventilator. It's a disgusting and horrible thing but it was, (and is) happening!
      You MUST look at things with the critical eye that the government, nor the police, nor hospitals necessarily have your best interests in mind. Once you understand this, you start to question and you start to see through to their ulterior motives.

    • @kfelix2934
      @kfelix2934 ปีที่แล้ว

      @@randallsmerna384 So correct but they have a chart for "clues", and they mark off what clue and speak into their body cam for documentation.
      e.g OLS
      They are looking for swaying, fail to keep hands by their side, putting the foot down, failure to count, failed in the instruction staged, failures in demo stage.
      They can use any thing to shore up their PC for the arrest. Thes SFST does NOT help you.

  • @lindastamper3822
    @lindastamper3822 ปีที่แล้ว

    Do you have to do a breath test

    • @mehardin
      @mehardin ปีที่แล้ว +2

      Not at the roadside. At the station, yes.

    • @JuarezDerrick
      @JuarezDerrick ปีที่แล้ว

      ​@@mehardinin Texas tou don't have to take it at all but they will get a warrant and take your blood

  • @chrisatkins7959
    @chrisatkins7959 2 หลายเดือนก่อน

    Ill help you all faster. FST's are voluntary in all states. Never do them. Never talk to the police. Your speech will be used against you.

  • @professor_thunder
    @professor_thunder ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Wearing tinted "driving" glasses negates the pc for suspicious eyes. The combination of eyewear, only rolling down the window 3-4 inches, and answering all probing questions with "none of your business", gives them little to work with. If they are determined to take you to jail - they will. Helping their case shows a subservient / lower iq personality - intellect.

  • @pablor3138
    @pablor3138 ปีที่แล้ว

    You never answered the question to your own video

    • @dreareed1573
      @dreareed1573 2 หลายเดือนก่อน

      He did! In the most lawyer way possible. You don’t have to do it, it can only hurt you, make your own decision from there. If you can’t read between the lines god help you

  • @PilowcaseBros
    @PilowcaseBros หลายเดือนก่อน

    hot

  • @shamusfarmer
    @shamusfarmer 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

    Nice how you waited until almost the end of the video to mention that this only applies to Texas. You may have gotten my watch time but you'll get nothing else but a dislike from me. 😡

    • @fulghamlawfirm2254
      @fulghamlawfirm2254  2 ปีที่แล้ว +3

      The content mentioned actually covers any state that uses DWI field sobriety tests. I hope the content helped

    • @shamusfarmer
      @shamusfarmer 2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@fulghamlawfirm2254 so your advice on the matter literally would work in any of the 50 states? Maybe I misunderstood you...

    • @fulghamlawfirm2254
      @fulghamlawfirm2254  2 ปีที่แล้ว +1

      @@shamusfarmer all the advice related to DWI field sobriety tests would work in all states

    • @jamesmills109
      @jamesmills109 ปีที่แล้ว

      ok Karen...

    • @dreareed1573
      @dreareed1573 2 หลายเดือนก่อน

      Field sobriety tests are pretty universal in the US. Exact same tests. And you can refuse in all 50 states without penalty

  • @MuzixMaker
    @MuzixMaker ปีที่แล้ว

    No.