DUI/Intoxalock (only Curious)

Marc the short answer to your question is no. FST’s are not required under the law. Implied consent only applies to chemical tests.

In my former life I had to deal with this a few times. An officer needs reasonable suspicion to ask a driver to do fst’s in the first place. The performance on those then lead to probable cause.

I always always always stressed to my officers make sure you have reasonable suspicion and probable cause in the correct sequence order. Not that the driver committed the offense of Contempt of cop. Most agencies have portable breath testers in the field these days. Those also are only legally viewed as an fst and does not conform to a legal chemical test under implied consent.

Difference between a "field sobriety test" (close your eyes, touch your nose), and a blow test? Locally - there are DUI task force units that are typically called, that do video and do FST's and blow tests. Usually they're NOT CALLED if the subject is so "falling down drunk", that it's fairly obvious they are impaired.

I'm one of those civilians that calls dispatch and follows someone who is "obviously impaired", until a unit arrives to make the stop. I have LITERALLY CHASED a hit and run DUI, until he was caught - and shot my own video. When the defense called me in for depo, he tried to make a fool out of me. Nice try dude. The DA was fairly impressed with the way I handled him, and I told the defense atty that I am the LAST PERSON HE WANTS on the stand.

Interesting article on GA implied consent law. In a nutshell - refusing to blow cannot be held against you in a court case for DUI (5th amendment implications), but will still result in a license suspension. How to make a DUI actually stick, becomes more difficult under these circumstances. In the case of a serious accident with injuries or death, it would probably be pretty easy to get the duty judge to issue a warrant compelling bloodwork. I've heard of cases where the cop hauled the offender into a hospital and physically forced them to submit WITHOUT A WARRANT - and the cases got thrown out.

We have a local bar (Cheers, go figure) that's a "4 O'Clock bar" - where most others are required to close at 2. Not uncommon to see a marked unit or DUI task force unit parked nearby, observing people as they exit - then making a DUI stop.

Rick

GREETINGS ALL,

I've been Clean & Sober since June, 1992 and a Commercial (Class A) Licensed Driver since November, 1998.

D.U.I./D.W.I./O.U.I. Check Points have been for Decades and while I anymore rarely see any such events, I'm sure they've probably become a bit stringent (but I'm just guessing). I've NEVER been through such a Check Point in any vehicle bigger than a Class C vehicle. My LAST DUI conviction was August, 1991, and of course it's permanently on my Driving Record and has caused little conflicts with Trucking Employers mainly in the L.T.L. realm.

--Schneider stated in 2008 that the conviction would be a problem with their Insurance--

I've known about some folks in early to mid 90's that had such restrictive devices in their personal conveyances and some folks found ways to side step the devices and drive their conveyances, yet they were not drinking or otherwise intaking of mezmerizing substances.

I'VE NEVER HEARD ABOUT OR HAVE EVER SEEN SUCH A DEVICE (INTOXALOT OR IGNITION INTERRUPT) INSTALLED IN A CLASS B OR A VEHICLE and hopefully will never view such device. Such has NO PLACE in TRUCKING!!

CHEERS!!