Concern Grows Over Accuracy of Intoxilyzer 8000 and Other CMI, Inc. Breathing Testing Machines
Advancements in technology are supposed to mean just that: advancement, improvement. New generations of machines are meant to be stronger, sleeker, more reliable, more efficient, and more accurate than the last generation. Unfortunately, CMI, Inc., the company that manufactures the Intoxilyzer line of breath-testing machines, is bucking the trend. Since as early as 2009 there have […]
Read MoreSeated Field Sobriety Tests May Expose Questions of Reliability in Standard FSTs
Local officers in Pell City, Alabama have been trained and certified to conduct sit-down field sobriety tests to help investigate boating under the influence (BUI) on the nearby Coosa River. Proponents claim these sit-down tests could be used in roadside investigations as well: “the seated tests are useful if during a traffic stop the person […]
Read MoreFlorida v. Jardines: stop sniffing my curtilage
In Florida v. Jardines, United State Supreme Court, Docket No. 11-564, Mar 26, 2013, Scalia, J., delivered the opinion of the Court in a 5 to 4 decision, in which Thomas, Ginsburg, Sotomayor, and Kagan, JJ., joined. Kagan, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which Ginsburg and Sotomayor, JJ., joined. Alito, J., filed a dissenting opinion, […]
Read MoreSome Perspective on the New Year’s 2013 DUI Season
In the 78 hours from 6:00 p.m. Friday, December 28th, to midnight January 1st, the associated press reported that Georgia state troopers made 321 Georgia DUI arrests, up from 262 reported last year. According to the most recent statistics, in 2008 Georgia had around 25,000 DUI arrests. Taking this as a general average, we can […]
Read MoreFormer Utah State Trooper Accused of Falsifying DUI Evidence
The Associated Press reports that a former Utah state trooper and her superiors are facing a lawsuit concerning wrongful DUI arrests. Utah state trooper Lisa Steed built her reputation on nabbing DUI arrests, using an “uncanny talent — as one supervisor once described it — to garner hundreds of arrests, setting records, earning praise as […]
Read MoreHENRY COUNTY STATE COURT: Failure to Maintain Lane – “Thick and Slurred” Speech – Refusal: Not Guilty of All Charges
Our client was pulled over for allegedly driving erratically. The arresting officer wrote in his police report that when he made contact with the defendant he could smell alcohol on his person. According to the report, the officer also observed that our client’s speech was “thick and slurred.” Our client refused field tests multiple times, […]
Read MoreGame Changer: Do the Internet and Social Media Deter or Encourage DUI?
In Pittsburgh, PA, local police departments are concerned that social media is undermining DUI enforcement. According to police, “as soon as they set up a DUI checkpoint, people begin warning others on Twitter and Facebook of the exact location,” which requires them to relocate. This tactic brings to mind the constitutional constraints on roadblocks City of Indianapolis […]
Read MoreIf You’re Being Investigated for DUI, Stay Calm and Stay Cool – The Police are on the Hook Too!
Any arrest is nerve-wracking, but when it comes to DUI the situation can be especially murky. When stopped at a roadblock or pulled over for a traffic stop and prompted into a DUI investigation, a person is faced with a multitude of options: Should I take a field sobriety test? Which ones? Can I refuse?; Should I take […]
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