Fight A DUI

The following points were written by California DUI Lawyer Howard M. Van Elgort ( www.santa-cruz-dui-lawyer.com ), and appear at http://preferredconsumer.com/legal/articles/fight_dui_arrest.html with some other insightful commentary. Many of these are more likely to be seen in practice than those on our 30 Ways To Fight A DUI article.

1. Did the police officer have a “reasonable suspicion” to justify a vehicle stop and detention for drunk driving.
2. Did the police officer observe the person driving in an erratic manner or in violation of the vehicle code? Did the officer observe any driving?
3. Did the police have “probable cause” to arrest the suspect for DUI (drunk driving or driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs)?
4. Did the officer observe sufficient “objective symptoms” of intoxication to conduct a DUI (drunk driving) investigation?
5. Did the arresting officer properly administer the field sobriety tests (FST’s) or balance and coordination test to determine whether or not to arrest the suspect for drunk driving or driving under the influence (DUI)?
6. Was any in-field breath test administered in the proper manner and was the machine used in proper working order?
7. Was an additional chemical test (blood or breath) conducted according to required procedures in the taking, handling and analysis of these samples?
8. Was the equipment used to analyze test samples in proper working order and maintained in accordance with regulations?
9. Were the test samples analyzed and the result reported according to state regulations, by a licensed laboratory, and in a scientifically approved manner?
10. Was the arrestee’s blood alcohol level rising or falling at the time of driving and at the time of the chemical test sample.
11. Were their any physiological reasons that would cause a false result on the breath machine (i.e.: GERD, residual mouth alcohol, heartburn, acid reflux disease, etc.)?