New Jersey’s DUI laws are some of the strictest drunk driving laws in the nation, including a law disallowing plea bargains in driving under the influence (DUI) cases. If you are convicted of driving while impaired in New Jersey, you face the possibility of hundreds of dollars in fines, up to 30 days in jail, and the loss of your driving privileges for 90 days for a first-offense conviction.
It is critical to have the legal representation of an experienced N.J. DUI defense attorney if you have been charged with drunk driving in New Jersey.
Field Sobriety Testing – First Step Toward DUI Charges in NJ
If New Jersey police at a traffic stop or the scene of an accident suspect a driver has been drinking, the officer will administer a field sobriety test to determine whether to make an arrest for drunk driving. As the basis for an arrest and subsequent breathalyzer or blood tests, field sobriety test results are the foundation of DUI charges filed against most New Jersey drivers.
However, field sobriety tests (FSTs) are inherently unreliable. If you have a knowledgeable field sobriety test attorney in NJ, the attorney can challenge the field sobriety tests in New Jersey court.
Why Trust Our New Jersey DUI Attorneys to Challenge Field Sobriety Tests?
The defense attorneys at the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall have courtroom-tested legal experience defending New Jersey drivers facing DUI charges. Five of our lawyers are certified in Standardized Field Sobriety Testing. This knowledge enables our attorneys to cross-examine law enforcement officers who make procedural errors and deviate from standardized testing and scoring protocols when detaining suspects.
A skilled DUI lawyer can immediately determine, by dashboard or body-worn camera video review, whether a police officer followed the correct procedures prior to arresting a DUI suspect. This is extremely important in challenging probable cause to arrest or implied consent for driver’s license suspensions.
What Are New Jersey’s Standardized FSTs?
Throughout New Jersey, police officers employ the three Standardized Field Sobriety Tests endorsed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) as methods for identifying intoxicated drivers.
Before administering FSTs, police officers should consider a suspect driver’s response to eye contact, whether they detect any odor of alcohol, and whether the driver is slurring his or her speech or has glassy eyes.
If any of these factors are present, the officer may then test the driver’s ability to perform field sobriety tests:
- Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus Test. The officer asks the driver to hold their head still and move only their eyes to follow a finger, pen, or other object as the officer moves it horizontally across the driver’s field of vision. The test allows law enforcement officers to observe whether the driver exhibits nystagmus, an involuntary movement of the pupil, which is a common sign of intoxication. If the driver cannot move his or her eyes smoothly while following the object across the field of vision, this will be interpreted as a sign of intoxication.
The officer should hold an object or finger at the edge of the suspect’s field of vision and ask the driver to focus on the object. The officer will again check for signs of nystagmus, this time looking to see whether the driver’s pupil remains stable while focused on the object. If the pupil exhibits jerky movement as the driver attempts to focus, this will be considered a potential sign of intoxication.
Finally, the officer will also hold the object at an angle from the driver’s face, looking to see whether the pupil smoothly focuses on the object or moves.
- Walk and Turn. For this test, also known as the “Heel-to-Toe” test, the officer will ask the driver to stand in a line with one foot in front of the other, heel to toe. The police officer will instruct the driver to walk forward for nine steps in a straight line and then turn around and walk nine steps in a straight line in the opposite direction. The driver is also told to look at their feet, count each step out loud, keep their arms at their side, be sure to touch heel-to-toe, and not to stop until they have completed the test. Failing to follow the instructions in any way will be considered evidence of having a blood alcohol concentration above the legal limit. If the driver makes a move to steady themselves during the test, that is considered a sign of intoxication. This test is particularly difficult because of the many requirements the driver must simultaneously keep in mind while performing it, as well as alcohol’s impairing effect on the coordination required to walk heel-to-toe.
- One Leg Stand Test. For this test, the officer tells the driver to stand with their feet together and their arms at their side. Then, when instructed, the driver is to raise either leg approximately six inches off the ground and point their foot, and while looking at their foot, count out loud until told to stop (usually to 30). If the driver sways, raises an arm to maintain balance, lowers the raised foot, or hops on the other foot, any of these actions will be interpreted as signs of intoxication.
Challenging the Validity of Field Sobriety Tests
NHTSA’s standardized field sobriety testing program is a three-day course with instructions about the administrative procedures and scoring systems for each of the three field sobriety tests. When police officers return to the field, however, many of them fail to properly instruct suspect drivers about the tests or fail to score standardized field tests accurately in accordance with NHTSA guidelines.
These procedural errors present an opportunity for a skilled DUI lawyer to develop a strategic defense. A knowledgeable attorney who has been trained in Standardized Field Sobriety Testing can raise the procedural errors to challenge subsequent DUI charges filed by the officer who made the errors. It underscores the importance of having the right legal representation to develop a DUI defense.
If your DUI attorney can persuade the court to invalidate the field sobriety tests that led to your being arrested and charged with DUI, this eliminates probable cause for your arrest. A lack of probable cause invalidates your arrest and the charges against you.
Challenging the validity of your field sobriety tests may help you if there were also issues with the blood alcohol content (BAC) testing or if your BAC was only marginally high.
Common reasons to question the administration or results of field sobriety testing include:
- Officer’s Deviations from Protocol. Any departure from the standardized instructions to the suspect, the officer’s demonstrations of test requirements, or scoring can undermine the tests’ reliability. For example, the officer must demonstrate the walk-and-turn test by walking heel to toe for nine steps and then demonstrate the turn and how the subject is supposed to recite the number of his or her steps. Similar protocols apply to the one-leg stand and demonstration. It is not unusual for officers to fail to demonstrate the tests. Each test has particular “clues” of impairment, which are to be scored present or absent once each, and then two or more clues must be present to fail the test. Some officers erroneously count the same clue twice to get a failure.
- Environmental Factors During Testing. Officers are instructed that factors such as uneven ground, poor lighting, inclement weather, or background noise must be given appropriate weight when judging test performance. An officer who did not provide appropriate – and explainable – allowance for poor field conditions when deciding to make an arrest may have irreparably damaged their case.
- Pre-existing Conditions Affecting Performance. The walk-and-turn and one-leg stand tests are physically demanding on individuals who have problems with balance and physical coordination. They simply are not valid when testing drivers who have certain medical conditions, disabilities, or other physical limitations caused by age, injury, or infirmity.
- Inherent Limitations. The tests are designed to divide the driver’s attention from the tasks that require attention to physical coordination. Poor performance can be attributed to stress, fatigue, medications, or other factors distinct from intoxication. The complexity of these tests also poses challenges for non-native English speakers or those who have difficulty understanding complex instructions.
Further, these are not conclusive tests. They are to be considered together by a police officer who forms a subjective opinion. There are many reasons to scrutinize an officer’s judgment. A newly certified officer may be eager to find problems in how drivers perform. Our defense may find this reflected in a recent spike in the number of DUI arrests the officers involved have made. Conversely, numerous DUI arrests may indicate a jaded veteran officer who regards field sobriety testing as a pro forma step toward an inevitable DUI charge.
Our team of field sobriety test-certified attorneys takes an in-depth approach to the legal processes involved in bringing a DUI charge and seeking DUI convictions. Often, police fail to conduct the tests properly. Our legal professionals know New Jersey DUI law. We are ready to get into the details of your DUI arrest and determine whether the officers involved had reasonable suspicion to stop you and arrest you for alleged drunk driving.
Contact a NJ DUI Defense Attorney Today – The Consultation is Free
The Standardized Field Sobriety Tests commonly used by New Jersey police are complex and provide police with numerous opportunities to arrest you for driving under the influence. But these tests are not foolproof and the law enforcement officers who use them are not infallible. If you are facing DUI charges in New Jersey, experienced legal representation is crucial to have the best chance of avoiding the harsh legal consequences of New Jersey law. A defense attorney with extensive knowledge and experience in the application of field sobriety testing may be able to develop a workable defense strategy and help you pursue a favorable outcome.
At the Law Offices of Jonathan F. Marshall, our New Jersey DUI attorneys have had great success in reducing the impact of Standardized Field Sobriety Tests on DUI cases. If you are facing charges for driving while intoxicated or driving under the influence, please contact us for a free consultation with a DUI attorney. We will work to help you keep a DUI conviction from damaging your life and limiting your opportunities in the future.
