Poking Holes In Police Mistakes During DUI Trial
There are various forms of DUI (driving under the influence) defense strategies that work. For example, you may poke holes in the arresting officer's testimony to weaken it and hopefully get your charges dismissed. Here are some of the ways in which you can do this.
Prove That the Officers Had No Probable Cause to Stop You
Have you ever wondered why the police stop some drivers for DUI tests while letting others pass? Well, the truth of the matter is that the police can't know (at least, not for sure) whether you are drunk or not when you are behind the wheel. However, there are telltale signs they can use to guess the odds of you being intoxicated, and these telltale signs are what is called probable cause. For example, if you are driving over the center line or accelerating and braking erratically, that is enough reason for the police to stop you (they have probable cause). Prove that the police had no reason to stop you in the first place and you shall have proven that they lacked probable cause for stopping you.
Reveal Errors in Field Sobriety Tests
The field sobriety tests typically administered to suspected drunk drivers are not foolproof. There are cases where the tests can give positive results for those who aren't intoxicated and negative results for those who are intoxicated. If you know what these errors are, and they apply to your case, then you may be able to use them to poke holes in the police's case against you.
For example, being overweight or having a physical impairment can make you fail the "walk and turn" test even if you aren't intoxicated. You may also fail the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, where the testing officers observe your eye movements while moving their finger in front of your case if you have an eye problem.
Prove That The Breathalyzer Was Defective
Lastly, you may also be able to weaken the arresting officers' testimony using the inaccuracies of breathalyzers. A breathalyzer may be inaccurate if it is affected by radio frequency interference, if it hasn't been properly calibrated or if there are traces of alcohol in your mouth at the time of testing, among other issues. These are technical issues that typically require the involvement of expert witnesses so that you may need one during your trial if you want to go with this defense.
Hopefully, the defenses above or any other applicable ones for your case will help you avoid a conviction. Don't forget to consult a website like http://www.chichesterlaw.com to increase the odds of this being the case for your situation.