The Defendant was driving on Jog Road North of 10th Avenue where he was weaving and crossing over onto the inside lane and back to the center lane and onto the outside lane. The vehicle drove this way for 1 mile and almost collided with the raised concrete curb 4 times within a ½ mile. The officer immediately noticed a strong odor of alcoholic beverage emitting from his breath and his eyes were bloodshot red, watery and glassy. His speech was slurred and mumbled at times. When asked for his documents, he fumbled through his wallet. When asked to step out of the car, he fumbled for the door handle and was unsteady as he exited the vehicle. When he was first asked if he had been drinking, he said he had not and then later changed his story to a couple drinks. During the Walk and Turn, the Defendant could not keep his balance, started the task 3 different times before being told to and missed heel to toe on 6 of the steps. He turned around improperly and the wrong way as well. During the One Leg Stand, the Defendant started the task 3 times before being told to and put his foot down numerous times. Additionally, he kept counting past 30 seconds when he was told to stop at 30. He also would not look at his foot like instructed. During the alphabet task, the Defendant missed and jumbled letters the first time and did it correctly the second time. He was placed under arrest and taken to the Breath Testing Facility where he gave a breath of a .082 and .082. The Firm filed a motion to suppress all of the Defendant’s statements that he made at the Breath Testing Facility as they were made in violation of his right to remain silent. The State agreed to the motion. Additionally, the Firm convinced the State that the evidence did not establish that he was under the influence at the time of driving. Result: The State agreed and dropped the DUI charge on the day of trial.
DUI & Criminal Division
