Beat a DUI: No Probable Cause

The law states that if a police officer does not have probable cause to arrest someone for a crime, including DUI, any evidence they obtain in the arrest may be inadmissible and the defendant may beat a DUI. Probable cause is a powerful protection for citizens in this country, and it would pay everyone to understand how it works and to take advantage of it when appropriate.

Probable Cause Defined

Probable cause actually means that, given the information available to the arresting officer at the time of the arrest, a reasonable and cautious person would believe that a crime had been committed. In some cases, that means that the arresting officer saw sufficient evidence of impaired driving to stop the driver and perform field sobriety tests. In other cases, that means they saw sufficient evidence of some other traffic violation, and when they stopped the driver for that offense, they discovered the signs of intoxication.

In reality, if there was no reasonable suspicion to pull a driver over at all, then any evidence obtained might be inadmissible. These are fine points of the law, but worth considering when attempting to beat a DUI conviction.

DUI Charges

In order to convict someone of DUI, the police have to have evidence that the offender was driving and that they were under the influence of drugs or alcohol. There are two ways to prove DUI:

• “Per se” intoxication – which means that the driver was given a breathalyzer test and their blood alcohol content (BAC) level was .08% or higher. No other evidence is needed, as long as those test results stand up in court, to prove DUI

• Signs of intoxication – whereby an officer’s observations are often sufficient to provide probable cause to arrest 

• Someone for DUI. Even if the driver’s BAC was below .08%, if they were dangerously weaving between lanes, they could be charged with DUI. In addition, if there is sufficient probable cause to stop a driver, the officer can testify to other evidences of intoxication, such as bloodshot eyes, breath smells of alcohol, slurred speech, flushed face, and more. These can also lead to Field Sobriety Tests that may provide other evidence of intoxication

Disputing Probable Cause

If the defendant can provide sufficient evidence that the officer did not have probable cause to arrest them on DUI charges, they may have their case dismissed. That may include providing witnesses that they were not driving impaired, evidence that they were not drinking that evening, evidence that the officer was distracted and pulled over the wrong driver, evidence that the defendant was lucid but suffering an illness, and more. With strong testimony and character witnesses on their side, it can become the officer’s word against the defendant’s. If there are enough witnesses for the defendant, they may beat their DUI charge.

Getting Legal Help with Disputing Probable Cause

Probable cause can be a nebulous area of police work, and courts generally trust the testimony of their own law enforcement officials. However, this is a perfect opportunity for someone who has an experienced DUI attorney to present a strong defense and possibly convince the court to drop or reduce the charges.