The Traffic Attorney | Field Sobriety Tests Don't Make Sense

One of the things that really bothers me (as a traffic ticket attorney) about field sobriety tests is that they assume too many things. There are so many variables that are assumed to be fixed, all of which help the prosecutor prove that the driver is guilty of DUI.

Let me give you an example. The first assumption that field sobriety tests make are that all drunk people are uncoordinated. This is the cornerstone of field sobriety tests, and is why they were invented in the first place. They are meant to give the officer an idea of whether the driver is too drunk to safely operate a vehicle. The problem with this assumption is it’s not always true. There are plenty of drunk people out there that, for one reason or another, are not uncoordinated. Therefore, field sobriety tests are flawed to begin with.

But worse than the above is that field sobriety tests then assume the inverse of the first assumption. That is to say that the second assumption is that all uncoordinated people are drunk. This is absurd. What this assumption tells me is that the un-athletic kid in elementary school who was always picked last in kickball was, in fact, drunk. If you assume “uncoordinated” means “drunk,” then that kid got started at an early age. I’m using this ridiculous example to show how faulty field sobriety tests are.

Unfortunately, field sobriety tests are administered every day, and they are the basis of DUI arrests every day. Moreover, the testimony of the administering police officer is also used in court to prove that drivers are guilty of DUI every day. For this reason alone, it is a good idea to have a DUI attorney at your side to help defend against the ridiculousness that is the field sobriety tests.