For those that are accused of drinking under the influence of alcohol, these allegations can be fought and there are a number of ways to do so. There are many valid reasons for a why a person can be wrongfully accused and may come across as being intoxicated without this actually being true. One of the things that an officer can base their assumption off of is the appearance of a person. They may have bloodshot or watery eyes, can show difficulty speaking or may have the smell of alcohol. There are other reasons for why these things can occur, such as an individual that is nervous or has had a drink but is not drunk.
When a field sobriety test is used in a case it is also not 100 percent accurate. The test may be done incorrectly or there may be other factors that influence the way a person seems to react. During the HGN test the suspect may be facing the lights of oncoming traffic and this can make their eyes react. During the walk and turn test a driver may be nervous and they can have trouble listening to the instructions or remaining balanced. If a chemical test is done, this may show inaccurate results as well. An officer may also not follow the right procedure and these tests are regulated under Title 17. An officer will also need to follow procedure in the rest of the case and the investigation and this can include making sure that probable cause exists before a driver is pulled over or reading a person their Miranda rights once they have been arrested.
Another defense in a DUI case is the fact that just because a person is not the best driver does not mean that they are intoxicated. It is a valid argument that a person may have made an unsafe lane change or had been speeding not because they were drunk but because they were not paying attention. For an officer to get a better assessment of an individual in question, they need to evaluate them for at least 15 minutes. If this has not been done then their conclusions may be inaccurate. When testing the blood alcohol content (BAC) of an individual, the results can be inaccurate. If the individual had recently used mouth wash this can influence the outcome and sometimes the tests are administered wrong or the devices that are used are malfunctioning. These are just some of the defenses that are available and there are many ways that charges of drunk driving have been disproven or reduced substantially. Let us assess your case through a free consultation.
