DUI Tag Archives — Jacksonville Criminal Lawyer Blog

Florida 5th DCA Holds That Officers Do Not Need to Obtain Valid Consent Before Requiring Field Sobriety Exercises Where There is Reasonable Suspicion of DUI

Published on: December 19, 2023 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

A major issue in DUI cases has not been fully fleshed out and has caused a lot of confusion among practicing criminal defense attorneys and judges. When a driver is pulled over and the officer has reasonable suspicion that the driver is under the influence of alcoholic beverages or drugs, does that officer have to obtain voluntary consent before requesting that the driver submit to field sobriety exercises?

The leading case on this issue comes out of the Second District Court of Appeals. In State v. Liefert, 247 So.2d 18 (Fla. 2d DCA 1971), the Second DCA held that when an officer has sufficient cause to believe a driver committed a DUI, the driver’s consent to taking field sobriety exercises is immaterial and the officer can require that the driver submit to them, or the refusal can be used against the driver as evidence of consciousness of guilt.

dui-law-300x200 In Liefert, an officer observed Mr. Liefert weaving across two lanes of traffic. The officer pulled Mr. Liefert over and noticed an odor of alcoholic beverage. The officer asked Mr. Liefert if he would take some physical sobriety tests and Mr. Liefert agreed. Mr. Liefert was arrested, based in part on the results of the sobriety tests and Mr. Liefert filed a motion to suppress all evidence obtained as The trial court granted the motion finding that the officer did not advise Mr. Liefert of a right to refuse to take the tests.

Understanding the DUI Police Report

Published on: September 1, 2022 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

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When a person is pulled over for driving under the influence (DUI), the arresting officer will prepare a police report, summarizing the reasons behind the arrest. These reports are important when it comes to prosecuting a DUI case, and they can be helpful for defense attorneys in evaluating the case and determining a strong basis for a defense.

Why DUI Reports Are Valuable

Without DUI reports, the courts can only go off the testimony and viewpoint from the parties involved. Alone, DUI reports are not enough to be considered admissible evidence. The court will not accept the report by itself since the statements constitute hearsay, but the report gives both sides an idea of what the arresting officer would say when called to the stand. Having this information will allow the defendant to prepare a case and fight the charges. The arresting officer’s report can show if there are any weaknesses in the case, including their basis for probable cause in the arrest.

Jacksonville DUI Convictions Come With Harsh Penalties

Published on: December 13, 2021 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

Consequences are Harsh in Jacksonville for DUI Convictions

News outlets reported that a 26-year-old man from St. Augustine, Florida was tragically killed in a wrong-way car accident in November, 2021. The deadly collision occurred on I-295 at Baymeadows Road. The accident resulted in all lanes being blocked for about five hours. According to state Troopers, a 42-year-old man was driving an SUV around 3:30 am northbound but on the southbound lane. The SUV hit a van head-on. The SUV driver was taken to a nearby hospital with serious injuries while the van’s driver died at the accident scene. While Florida Highway Patrol (FHP) did not receive any calls about the wrong-way crash, they did receive a wrong-way driver advisory about an SUV at 95 and Baymeadows about an hour-and-a-half before the deadly accident.

The SUV’s driver, who is a foreign national from the Dominican Republic and has no U.S. driver’s license or address, was arrested. According to arrest reports, the driver’s blood alcohol content (BAC) was 0.27–three times the legally allowable limit under Florida law. He has been charged with DUI manslaughter and remained hospitalized but on an absentee booking as well as an immigration hold by Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE). Arrest records show the man is being held on a $125,000.00 bond.

Florida Police Cannot Arrest DUI Suspect Without Observing Him/Her Driving

Published on: September 30, 2016 | by Lasnetski Gihon Law

In Florida, a police officer is not normally permitted to arrest a person for DUI (driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs) unless the police officer observes the suspect actually commit the crime. This applies to standard DUI’s, not DUI’s involving an accident. This is not an issue in most DUI cases in Florida as DUI arrests are usually the result of a traffic stop after the police officer claims to observe the driver commit some traffic violation.

However, there are situations where a police officer comes upon a person he/she believes to be impaired, but the driver is no longer operating the vehicle or in actual physical control of the vehicle (usually characterized as being inside the vehicle in the driver’s seat with the keys). In these cases, the police officer may not be able to make a DUI case even if he/she has reason to believe the suspect was recently driving the vehicle while impaired from alcohol or drugs.

For instance, in a DUI case just south of Jacksonville, Florida, a witness observed the suspect driving erratically and then come to a stop in the roadway. The witness was in the medical field and decided to stop and see if the driver needed any medical assistance. The witness got the driver out of the vehicle, obtained her keys and drove the vehicle off to the side of the road. It became apparent to the witness that the driver was impaired from alcohol. A police officer arrived when the driver and the keys were already outside of the vehicle. The police officer arrested the driver for DUI based on his observations that she was drunk and the witness’s statement that she had been driving.