June 2010 - Posts

• An Interview….

  Last week I granted an interview which touched on a broad range of interesting subjects.  Videotapes on YouTube of the 50-minute interview may be of interest to readers of this blog, both attorneys and laymen….       DUI: The nature of the crime  (5:29)      What is wrong with the present system of drunk driving laws and law enforcement?  (3:48)    [...] Posted Jun 28 2010, 03:05 PM by DUI BLOG Filed under: Duiblog

• No Probable Cause Necessary for DUI?

  Police agencies across the country continue to deny that they employ DUI quotas — which force officers to make unjustified stops and/or arrests.  See, for example, DUI Quotas, Yes We Have No DUI Quotas and "Inside Edition" Documents DUI Quotas Across the U.S.   A few agencies, however, actually brag about them.  Deputies Get Quota for Hoopfest DUI Patrols Spokane, [...] Posted Jun 27 2010, 10:33 AM by DUI BLOG Filed under: Duiblog

• State Supreme Court: Treat Misdemeanor DUI as Felony

  About 20 years ago, I coined the phrase "The DUI Exception to the Constitution" to describe a disturbing but growing treatment of DUI as a "politically incorrect" offense.  Created and fostered by the demonization of the crime  by Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the pressures on legislators and judges — most of whom face MADD’s wrath [...] Posted Jun 26 2010, 12:14 PM by DUI BLOG Filed under: Duiblog

• The “Selective Memory” Filter in DUI Trials

  How does a police officer testifying in a drunk driving trial recall every detail of a DUI investigation months earlier? When an officer stops a motorist and suspects that he may be under the influence of alcohol, he begins to mentally record various observations….Was the driving erratic, and in what way? What was [...] Posted Jun 24 2010, 10:25 AM by DUI BLOG Filed under: Duiblog

• Double Jeopardy and Double Punishment in DUI Cases

  When a person is arrested for DUI, his driver’s license is confiscated by the arresting officer and he is given a notice of "administrative suspension". He is also given a citation to appear in court to face criminal drunk driving charges. These are usually two very different procedures: (1) the administrative suspension for [...] Posted Jun 20 2010, 09:31 AM by DUI BLOG Filed under: Duiblog

• “Yes, We Have No DUI Quotas”

  As every experienced DUI attorney (and patrol cop) knows, DUI quotas commonly exist — despite the repeated denials of police bureaucrats.  See my past posts DUI Quotas, "Inside Edition" Documents DUI Quotas Across U.S. and "What DUI Quotas?".  They may be unwritten, or disguised as "suggestions" or "guidelines", but the intent to the patrol cop is clear:  make [...] Posted Jun 13 2010, 12:09 PM by DUI BLOG Filed under: Duiblog

• 400 Wrongly Convicted in Washington: Faulty Breathalyzers

  I’ve posted well over 100 times during the past six years on this blog about the multitude of reasons why breath alcohol machines are both inaccurate and unreliable.  See, for example, How Breathalyzers Work (and Why They Don’t), Breath Alcohol Testing: "State of the Art"?, Breathalyzer Inaccuracy: Testing During the Absorptive Stage, "Close Enough for [...] Posted Jun 10 2010, 09:27 AM by DUI BLOG Filed under: Duiblog

• Scientific Truth vs Legal Expediency: Presuming Guilt in DUI Cases

  The drunk driving laws make it a criminal offense to drive a vehicle while under the influence of alcohol (DUI) or while having a blood-alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08% or higher. It is not, however, a criminal offense to be under the influence or to have a BAC of .08% while taking a breath test [...] Posted Jun 09 2010, 07:57 AM by DUI BLOG Filed under: Duiblog

• Another DUI “Right Without a Remedy”

  When the police administer a breathalyzer, the suspect’s breath sample is analyzed — and then destroyed by purging it into the air. Although it is easy and inexpensive to save the sample so that it could later be independently analyzed by the defense, the U.S. Supreme Court in California v. Trombettaruled that there is no right [...] Posted Jun 05 2010, 07:38 AM by DUI BLOG Filed under: Duiblog