The Worst Mistakes Drivers Make During A DUI Stop

What are the worst mistakes drivers make during a DUI stop? I’m going to try and itemize them for you, because I’ve seen them all over the years, and let me go through some common ones. Well, first of all, arguing or being confrontational with the officer, that doesn’t work, it’s going to get documented. It could show that you’re impaired, because people who are impaired have poor judgment and act aggressively, and it’s on body cam, so don’t do that. Second, is volunteering too much information to the police. You They are going to ask you questions. You don’t have to answer most of their questions really, you know, you have to identify yourself. You have to provide your licence, your registration, insurance, by the way, that’s another common mistake, refusing to do that. That’s going to be another charge you get if you fail to provide these documents. You’re going to get in trouble, because you have an obligation to provide these documents to the police upon request during a traffic stop. Thirdly, you know, refusing a roadside Alco Test demand. That’s the device you blow in, or refusing the breath demand for the Intoxilyzer at the police station. Refusing a roadside screening test or refusing to provide a breath sample at the police station just aggravates the situation. You’re going to get charged with refusal, which is the same as impaired driving, in fact, it’s going to cost you more than impaired driving. It’s a $2,000 fine by itself, criminal record, same suspension as impaired driving or blowing over the legal limit.

The next worst mistake is fefusing a drug recognition evaluation. If you’re charged by the police with impaired driving by drug, the police are going to have an evaluator back in the station. The police are going to demand you do a 12 steps with very detailed balance test, etc, You cannot refuse a drug recognition evaluation. You’ve got to do all the balance tests, the eye test, the blood pressure. Everything. It is a 12-step process. Don’t refuse that, or it’s another charge of refusal with a mandatory minimum $2,000 fine. And carefully listen to the officers’ instructions. Take it seriously. Take your time, listen to the instructions. By the way, they can also demand that you do standard roadside sobriety test at the scene, where they could ask you to step out of the car, follow their instructions and do those roadside tests. You’re not allowed to refuse that if they ask. If they say to you, hey, will you do, you know, will you volunteer to do is these tests? No, no. Make sure it’s a demand. Ask them, do I have to because there’s a difference, because sometimes they’ll just at the police station between the first and second breast sample, they’ll say, hey, could you do some of these balance tests for me? If there is no formal demand, dDon’t do it, unless it’s a formal demand and clarify that with them, okay. So these are some of the common mistakes, and also failing to document what happened after the stop the next day. Write everything down while it’s fresh in your memory, for your lawyer. And the other thing is people, you know, this is one of the most important things. They’re going to read your rights to counsel. You have a right to speak to a lawyer before you do the breath tests at the police station and before you do the drug recognition evaluation. Speak to that lawyer on the phone. That lawyer is going to give you legal advice. They’re going to tell you not to answer any questions. You have a right to remain silent. They’re going to tell you that you absolutely have to do the breath tests, and you absolutely have to do the drug recognition evaluation test as well. So, people get themselves in trouble. They get confrontational, they get argumentative, they refuse things, and you just need to be polite and cooperative. Shut up. Do the tests you have to, but don’t volunteer to do anything. Don’t answer any questions about how much you had to drink or anything like that, whether you’ve done drugs, whether you’re on prescription medication. If you do all of these things right, if you just shut up and pay attention, you might just win your case. Use common sense and listen to the lawyer that you speak to. You may have a chance of winning these things because people ruin their defences by talking the police and doing these worst common mistakes that I’ve seen over the last 35 years of defending people charged with DUI matters and impaired by drug.