| In an effort to combat drunk driving, law enforcement | | | | law enforcement official will demonstrate to you what |
| officials have developed several standardized field | | | | he or she wants you to do. This simply involves holding |
| sobriety tests to estimate the blood alcohol content | | | | one foot out in front of you, about six inches off of the |
| concentration (BAC) of a suspected drunken driver. | | | | ground. You will be asked to count out loud while you |
| While it is becoming increasingly popular to use | | | | hold this position. The officer is looking for swaying or |
| machine tests like with a Breathalyzer or Intoxilyzer, | | | | putting the foot down to balance. |
| the police may still ask you to perform a balance or | | | | Secondly, another test that policemen might use is the |
| coordination field test if they believe that you are | | | | walk-and-turn test. You will be asked to stand with |
| driving drunk. | | | | your feet lined up, with your right toes behind your left |
| Alcohol affects the body in several different ways. | | | | heel. You then must take nine heel-to-toe steps along |
| One of the things that it does is change our | | | | the line before turning and coming back the same way. |
| neurotransmitters. It stimulates the inhibitory transmitters | | | | Again, an officer is looking for a loss of balance, |
| while blocking the effects of the excitatory ones. In the | | | | stopping, inability to follow directions, and stepping off |
| part of the brain called the cerebellum, this translates | | | | the line. |
| into a loss of our fine motor skills as well as balance. | | | | Lastly, you might have to do a horizontal gaze |
| Because of this, alcohol can greatly impair our ability to | | | | nystagmus test, or HGN. While this does not directly |
| drive. It dulls our reactions, decreases our good | | | | test your balance, it still looks for signs of inebriation. A |
| judgment, and generally slows our mental functions. | | | | law enforcement officer will take an object like a pen |
| This is why driving while intoxicated can be extremely | | | | and ask you to follow it with your eyes without moving |
| dangerous, which is the reason that law enforcement | | | | your head. He or she will hold the objected about a |
| officials have devised several ways to test your fine | | | | foot from your face and move it back and forth. They |
| motor coordination and balance with their standardized | | | | are looking for jerky or trembling eyes, which can |
| field sobriety tests. | | | | signal that you have been drinking. |
| First, if you are pulled over on suspicion of driving while | | | | If you or someone you know has been pulled over for |
| inebriated, you may have to perform a one-legged | | | | a DWI, you should seek the advice of an experienced |
| stand. Basically, an officer will first ask you to stand | | | | attorney to see what you can do about your charge. |
| with both of your feet on the ground next to each | | | | To find a DWI/DUI lawyer in your area, check out the |
| other and your arms down by your side. Typically, the | | | | Legal City Attorney Search Directory today. |