| The police cruiser pulls in behind your vehicle, and the | | | | results NHTSA had hoped for to conclude that the |
| officer flips on his lights. You pull over. You roll down | | | | field sobriety tests were scientifically valid. Of the 118 |
| your window as the officer approached your driver | | | | individual arrested, 32% were had a blood alcohol |
| side door. He asks you if you had anything to drink | | | | content level of under .10. |
| tonight. Then, he asks you to step out of the car. On | | | | 2. The exercises cannot differentiate between |
| the side of the road, he asks you if you would be | | | | impairment caused by alcohol and impairment caused |
| willing to take his "Field Sobriety Tests". The officer | | | | by lack of sleep or coordination. |
| begins by reading you instructions for the "tests" and | | | | Even if it can be assumed that the officers are able to |
| then demonstrates what he wants you to perform. | | | | judge impairment by the field sobriety tests, it is |
| The two psychomotor "tests" a Florida DUI cop will | | | | impossible to conclude that the impairment is a result |
| request you to perform are the walk and turn and the | | | | of alcohol as opposed to just being tired or being |
| one-legged stand. After you perform, the officer will | | | | clumsy. For example, in 1994, Spurgeon Cole, a clinical |
| likely conclude that you failed his "tests", and place you | | | | psychologist and researcher with Clemson University, |
| under arrest for DUI. | | | | performed a study on the Field Sobriety Exercises |
| The exercises the cop used to arrest you are | | | | testing the hypothesis that completely sober people |
| unreliable. There are three main reasons these tests | | | | would find the exercises difficult to perform and, as a |
| are unreliable and should not be given any validity in | | | | result, would be judged "impaired by alcohol" by |
| court: The scientific studies on the test do not show | | | | officer's viewing their performance. |
| them to be valid; the exercises cannot differentiate | | | | In the Study, Fourteen police officers rated the |
| between impairment caused by alcohol and impairment | | | | performance of 21 individuals what had completed the |
| caused by lack of sleep or coordination, and the | | | | field sobriety tests. The officers had a mean |
| exercises are abnormal tests that should not be used | | | | experience level of 11.7 years, and all had completed |
| to test normal faculties. | | | | the state DUI training program and had field experience |
| 1. The Science does not back up the validity of the | | | | with DUI detection. |
| field sobriety tests. | | | | The participants consisted of 10 males and 11 females, |
| So in the 1970s, NHTSA funded a research project to | | | | between 21 and 55 years of age, with no known |
| study field sobriety tests. The studies evaluated | | | | disabilities. The participants completed six different field |
| whether or not field sobriety tests could predict | | | | exercises, including the walk and turn, finger to nose, |
| whether subject was above or below a.10% BAC, the | | | | and one legged stand. The officers watched the |
| presumptive level of intoxication in California, Florida, | | | | performance on video. At the end of the video, all 21 |
| and many other States at the time of the studies. | | | | officers were asked to determine, yes or no, if the |
| Results of 1977 | | | | participants were impaired and should not be driving. |
| Interestingly, NHTSA's funded research first concluded | | | | 3. The field sobriety tests are abnormal exercises that |
| that the alphabet test and finger to nose test were not | | | | should not be utilized to attempt to gauge normal |
| recommended for use as sobriety tests because they | | | | faculties. |
| did not add anything to the predictability of the | | | | In Florida, a DUI Attorney will tell you it is only against |
| subject's influence by alcohol. It is therefore surprising | | | | the law to drink and drive to the extent that one's |
| that police officers continue to use both of these | | | | normal faculties are impaired by the drinking. Only then |
| exercises today in DUI investigations, considering that | | | | would the driver be guilty of DUI. But clearly, the very |
| the "bible" of Police Officer DUI training comes from | | | | tests such as the walk and turn on a line, or standing |
| the Student Manual published by NHTSA. | | | | on one foot, are abnormal exercises. What the officer |
| Even more interestingly, the officer's participating in the | | | | should be testing is whether the accused is able to |
| 1977 study had an error rate of 47%! Of the 101 | | | | walk normally, or stand normally. As a result, the tests |
| people that the DUI officer's concluded were impaired, | | | | are truly designed for the individual to fail. |
| 47% of them had a blood alcohol content of less than | | | | Because of the foregoing three reasons, the field |
| .10 (the legal limit at the time). | | | | sobriety exercises are inherently unreliable. A DUI |
| So in 1981, NHTSA felt the need to try again. However, | | | | Attorney should bring these to the attention of the Jury |
| the results of this test were not the overwhelming | | | | when trying your DUI case. |