DUI EvidenceThere are many different types of evidence that can be used against you. These include:
Your driving pattern is usually the first thing the arresting officer notices, leading him to stop you and then make further tests to determine whether you are drunk driving or not. After he has stopped you he will then be looking for physical signs of intoxication, such as unsteadiness, slurred speech, bloodshot eyes, an odor of alcohol on your breath etc. It should be noted that the presence of these signs is often highly subjective and it is also very easy for the arresting officer to say that these signs were present when in fact they were not. After the arresting officer has determined from your appearance and behavior that you may indeed have been driving under the influence then he will conduct further tests which are known as Field Sobriety Tests. These can include One Leg Stand, Walk and Turn, Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN), Alphabet, Modified Position of Attention, Fingers to Nose and Preliminary Alcohol Screening (PAS) which is a small hand held breathalyzer unit that measures the amount of alcohol in your breath. During this process any statements that you make to the arresting officer can also be used as evidence of your intoxication in your DUI trial. Once the arresting officer has satisfied his suspicion that you were drunk driving then you will be taken to the police station to undergo further, more reliable tests. Here you will have to submit to a chemical blood test which measures the exact quantity of alcohol that is present in your blood, a urine test or a breathalyzer test. The legal limit in San Diego DUI law for a Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) test is 0.08%. This means that if your blood sample contains 0.08 grams or more of alcohol per every 100 milliliters of blood then you are guilty of driving under the influence. You have the right to refuse to participate in any of the field sobriety tests and that is what a good San Diego DUI attorney would advise you to do (under California’s zero tolerance laws, minors under the age of 21 must submit to the roadside sobriety tests). These tests are highly subjective, prove nothing and if not administered correctly have no scientific worth whatsoever. If not on probation and you are over the age of 21 you should refuse to participate in all field/roadside sobriety tests. Note that you may still be arrested if you refuse these tests. However, once under arrest you must consent to a blood test or breath test at the police station. If you refuse you will automatically lose your driver’s license for at least one year, and the police officers will forcibly take a blood sample anyway. Even if you get a jury trial after having refused the test, the jury will be instructed to find you guilty regardless of what your San Diego DUI lawyer presents to the court. By driving a vehicle in San Diego you have given your Implied Consent to submit to chemical tests for alcohol or drugs if a San Diego police officer suspects you of driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Once at the police station or booking facility, you do have the right to choose whether you do a blood sample or a breath sample. If you are certain that you are below the legal alcohol limit then you should opt for the blood sample as that can later be obtained by your San Diego DUI lawyer for independent testing. Conversely, a breath test is much less reliable and gives your DUI lawyer more scope to disprove the test result later. If the arresting officer suspects you of driving under the influence of drugs in San Diego then you will have the right to choose between a blood test or a urine test, but if urine analysis is not supported by the arresting agency then you must consent to a blood test. |
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