If you happened to get stopped by the police for suspicion of DWI (Driving While Intoxicated) it is important that you realize you have numerous rights, underneath Constitutional Law, which you must be alert to if you wish to restrict the consequences of the circumstances at hand.
Should I Participate in the Field Sobriety Test?
No, you don’t have to.
You do have a Constitutional Right referred to as “The 5th” that will protect you from becoming compelled to be a witness against yourself, and this will protect you from becoming compelled to be involved in circumstances that will force you to be engaged with law enforcement in such a way which might cause you to suggest your own guilt. You should always take advantage of your own rights.
A tricky decision sometimes must be made while stopped by an officer.
If you know truthfully that you are not drunk, you must make a choice about whether to cooperate with the authorities under these circumstances, or not.
Drunk or not, going home will beat going to jail.
Odds are, if officers believe you are intoxicated, they probably are going to take you in to jail anyway; therefore, there really isn’t any advantage in participating in the “roadside test” and playing the “stand on one leg” game with officers.
But what if I am not drunk?
But, while a criminal lawyer talks about a DWI arrest prevention, he’s always certain to remind his clients that, as they might have the ability to beat a DWI charge in court with his guidance, they will not have the ability to avoid that ride to jail, the process of booking, and expenses related to bonding out of jail upon a charge for drunk driving.
With this said, in some instances, cooperating with the authorities may be a good idea if you believe you may work your way out of the arrest; however, if you fail in these efforts, you will double the pressure upon your case by offering the police proof against you, that you did volunteer, as you made the decision to cooperate with DWI and DRE sobriety testing.
For this reason, consult a criminal lawyer, who can be a staunch advocate of keeping your Fifth Amendment rights prepared to make clear when necessary.
