A DUI investigation in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, often begins long before an officer asks you to stand on one leg.
From the moment the officer approaches your vehicle, he or she may be gathering evidence: how you answer questions, how you retrieve your license, how you get out of the car, how you stand and even how you walk from one location to another.
Many drivers don’t realize this. They believe the “DUI test” begins when the officer starts explaining the roadside sobriety exercises.
It doesn’t.
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Five Most Common Tactics Police Try to Use During Field Sobriety Tests in Palm Beach Gardens
Here are five potentially misleading techniques you may encounter during a Florida DUI investigation and why understanding them matters.
1. The Friendly Question: “Where Are You Coming From?”
It sounds like small talk.
“Where are you coming from tonight?”
Maybe the officer is friendly. Maybe the question is asked forcefully. Either way, your answer can potentially become evidence.
Imagine answering:
“I’m coming from dinner.”
The next question may be:
“Where did you have dinner?”
If your answer is the name of a restaurant or bar, you can probably guess what comes next:
“How much did you have to drink?”
Now you’re discussing alcohol consumption.
Drivers sometimes believe they have to answer these questions because a police officer is asking them.
Generally, you are required to provide certain information and documents during a lawful traffic stop, including your driver’s license, registration and proof of insurance. But that does not mean you have to participate in an interrogation about where you were, who you were with or how many drinks you consumed.
The Fifth Amendment matters during a DUI investigation just like it does in other criminal investigations.
And remember: You do not have to lie to politely decline to answer a question.
2. “Please Step Out of the Vehicle”
An officer investigating DUI may ask or direct you to get out of your vehicle.
But pay close attention to what happens next.
The officer may not tell you exactly where or how to stand.
You get out. You’re standing on the side of a road, potentially at night, with traffic going by, flashing emergency lights behind you and you’re nervous.
So you naturally lean against your vehicle.
Later, the police report may say something like:
“The driver leaned against the vehicle for balance.”
Wait a minute.
Were you leaning against the vehicle because you couldn’t maintain your balance?
Or were you simply standing comfortably while talking to the officer?
Those are two very different things.
The important point is that the officer may already be making observations about your balance before the formal roadside exercises have even started.
From the moment you exit that vehicle, assume your movements are being observed and potentially recorded on body camera.
3. “Do You Have Any Injuries?”
Before certain roadside sobriety exercises, an officer may ask about physical injuries or medical conditions, like diabetes.
This sounds like the officer is trying to determine whether you’re physically capable of performing the exercises.
And to some extent, that’s exactly what the officer should be doing.
But watch what can happen next.
Suppose you say:
“I’ve had surgery on my knee.”
Instead of ending the exercise, you may hear follow-up questions:
“But you can walk normally, correct?”
“You can walk a straight line?”
“You can stand on your other leg?”
“You don’t use a cane?”
Those questions can minimize the significance of the injury before you’ve even attempted the exercise.
A person may be perfectly capable of walking from a parking lot into a grocery store while having difficulty standing heel-to-toe or balancing on one leg under stressful roadside conditions.
Those aren’t necessarily the same thing.
Don’t allow yourself to be embarrassed or pressured into minimizing a legitimate physical limitation.
If you have an injury, prior surgery, balance issue, neurological condition or another physical limitation, be accurate and consistent about it.
4. Putting Down the Tape for the Walk-and-Turn
Here’s one that many people don’t think about.
An officer may use a strip of tape or another marker to establish a line for the Walk-and-Turn exercise.
You may even be asked to help place or extend that tape on the ground.
The driver thinks:
“The test hasn’t started yet.”
But the officer may still be watching.
How did you bend down?
Did you stumble?
Did you use your hand for balance?
Did you step away from the line?
Did you sway?
Did you have difficulty standing back up?
The act of putting down the tape isn’t one of the standardized field sobriety exercises.
But that doesn’t mean the officer can’t make observations about what you’re doing.
This illustrates a larger point about DUI investigations: Don’t assume you’re only being evaluated while you’re performing the formal exercises.
The officer may be evaluating you the entire time.
5. The “Skier”: The Exercise That Isn’t Really an Exercise
This is the biggest one.
At the end of roadside sobriety exercises, an officer may tell you to stand in a particular position, sometimes with your feet apart and your hands behind your back.
I call this one “The Skier.”
Why?
Because you can look like you’re standing at the top of a ski slope getting ready to head downhill.
Except there’s one major difference.
This isn’t another sobriety exercise.
If an officer has finished the roadside exercises and directs you into a position that facilitates handcuffing, the investigation may effectively be over.
The officer may have already decided there is probable cause to arrest you for DUI.
You aren’t about to perform another exercise.
You’re probably about to be handcuffed.
Understanding that distinction is important because people sometimes continue talking at this point, trying to convince the officer not to arrest them.
Those additional statements may not help.
And they may create additional evidence for the prosecution.
The Bigger Lesson: The Investigation Starts Earlier Than You Think
The biggest mistake is thinking a DUI investigation consists of three roadside exercises and nothing else.
An officer may be observing you from the moment your vehicle is stopped:
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How did you answer questions?
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How did you retrieve your documents?
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What did you say about drinking?
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How did you exit the vehicle?
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Did you touch the vehicle?
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How did you walk?
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Did you sway while standing?
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What medical conditions did you disclose?
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How did you behave between exercises?
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What did you say once the officer appeared ready to arrest you?
All of those observations can potentially end up in a police report and be used as part of the State’s DUI case.
But remember something else: An officer’s interpretation of what happened isn’t necessarily the final word.
Body-camera and dash-camera footage can be extremely important. If a report says someone “swayed,” “stumbled” or “used the vehicle for balance,” the video may allow a DUI defense attorney to evaluate what actually happened.
A DUI arrest is the beginning of the case, not the end.
Arrested for DUI in Palm Beach Gardens, FL?
If you’ve been arrested for driving under the influence in Palm Beach Gardens, FL, our DUI attorney may be able to help you prove your innocence.
Fill out our online contact form and someone will get back to you shortly. If you want to speak with a Palm Beach Gardens criminal attorney right away, call us now at (561) 671-5995
This article is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Every DUI investigation is different.
