DUI Field Sobriety Tests in Illinois

Reader’s Question:

If in case I am stopped for DUI in Arlington Heights, Illinois, what do you think I should do if a police officer asks me to watch his pen or do physical agility tests?

Herman

Arlington Heights, IL

You have to remember that if you are stopped for DUI in Arlington Heights, Illinois, you don’t have an obligation whatsoever to submit to any physical tests like watching a pen, walking a line or balancing on one leg. There would be no legal penalty for refusing these kinds of tests. The officer might tell you that you will be arrested if you refuse to do the tests and don’t fall for a line like that. You could be arrested when you refuse, but the police officer has already decided to arrest you before he asked you to do the tests. It could help a lot in your DUI defense if you politely and respectfully decline the tests prior to consulting with a lawyer.

Regardless of how well you might think you would do on the tests, you would learn you failed the tests. Even police officers who have already done the tests hundreds of times fail to administer the tests by the book. If the police officer asks you to perform the tests for him, politely tell the officer that you should speak to a lawyer before deciding if you would perform any test the officer might ask you.

DUI Field Sobriety Tests in Illinois

Reader’s Question:

I was often told that if I will be stopped for DUI here in Springfield, Illinois, I should not take any field sobriety tests because it will not be against the law if I to refuse to take it. If that is the case, why do police officers still ask a person suspected for DUI to do it instead of asking to take chemical test?

Caiden

Springfield, IL

Field Sobriety Tests (FST’s) are psychophysical tests used to evaluate an individual’s physical and/or mental impairment. FST’s focus on the skills that are needed for safe driving. Most of the FST’s known to be more ‘reliable’ psychophysical tests are known as “divided attention” tasks. This kind of FST would require an individual to concentrate on more than one task at the same time. A driver needs to drive safely a car by simultaneously control steering, breaking, and acceleration; react to constantly changing driving environment; and perform many other tasks.

Alcohol affects an individual’s ability to adequately divide attention, thus causing drivers to concentrate on more difficult tasks while ignoring simpler ones. Even when impaired, most of us can successfully concentrate on a single task fairly well, but most drivers could not successfully divide their attention between multiple tasks at once. What you have been told is right that if you will be stopped for DUI suspicion in Springfield, Illinois, you don’t necessarily have to submit to FST’s. The sole reason why police officers ask someone to take these tests is to create a probable cause for a DUI arrest and also to gather evidence that can be used in a DUI court case trial.

Illinois Drunk Driving DUI Arrest – What Are The Signs?

Reader’s Question:

I have never been arrested for drunk driving here in Illinois because I actually don’t drink and drive. But I’ve been following some news and information about DUI because a friend of mine has been convicted before. I just wanna know, what signs are the police officers looking for if they ask a driver to pull over because of a DUI suspicion?

Joe

Aurora, IL

Usually, in Illinois, a driver is asked to pull over because of a DUI suspicion if he/she is drifting between lanes, swerving erratically while driving, making excessively wide turns, driving at extremely high or low speeds or stopping abruptly for no reason. But once the driver already stopped, the police officer is often looking for some signs which are commonly associated with drunkenness or illegal drug use. These signs are often exhibited by drivers who are drunk driving, have taken medications before or while driving and/or have taken illegal drugs.

If a driver is asked to pull over, the characteristics or signs that police officers usually look for in a driver suspected for driving under the influence are as follows:
-a face which is flushed, reddened, blank or expressionless
-jerky eye movements
-eyes which are watery or red
-slurred speech
-slow to react
-poor coordination or poor balance
-irritability
-slow recall or memory
-tiredness or fatigue
-nausea / vomiting
-excessive sweating

Illinois Blood Alcohol Test – Do You Refuse?

Reader’s Question:

I have heard from someone that Kane County, Illinois is implementing a no-refusal weekend with regard to blood alcohol testing for people suspected of driving under the influence. What that this mean and how helpful would this be in the prevention of DUI?

Lucy

Elgin, IL

Kane County, Illinois officials say that people suspected of driving under the influence will only have the choice to either voluntarily have their blood alcohol content measured by urine, blood or breath test or they will have their blood drawn involuntarily.

The Kane County’s State’s Attorney recently announced the No Refusal Weekend but did not answer questions about what weekend the forced blood draws will occur. Search warrants have been written in advance in preparation for No Refusal weekend. Police officers would only have to fill in specific details in each DUI case and have an assistant state’s attorney review it before it is signed by a judge. The Kane County Health Department would supply phlebotomists to do the blood draws.

Officials are also optimistic that when faced with an order for an involuntary blood draw, most DUI suspects would agree to take a breath test instead and that more DUI suspects would take plea deals rather than go to trial.

Failed Breath Test Should I Hire a DUI Attorney in Illinois?

Reader’s Question:

I took the DUI breath test and it was over the limit. Do I still get a chance with my case? Should I hire a lawyer?

John

Thank you for asking John.

There is always hope if your DUI lawyer is experienced of those numbers and knows all the ways those numbers can be wrong. The DUI breath test being used by police officers in Illinois does not measure alcohol specifically, and can make many types of errors and mistakes. According to the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHTSA), field sobriety tests are only 65% reliable, and breath, blood and urine testing can be similarly unreliable. Some of the factors that can lead to inaccurate results include improper administration, faulty equipment, faulty analysis and other factors.

An experienced and expert DUI lawyer knows how to examine the breath testing records to determine whether the machine that produced it was working improperly or if there are other reasons to believe the number it printed out was inaccurate.

Goodluck!

MariCAR