You happen to be driving home from a get together with some of your colleagues at near by bar. You have consumed a couple of beers however you felt fine to drive home. You make a turn without signaling and then you observe in your rear view mirror flashing lights. You are aware you have not done anything wrong but you all of the sudden become frightened as your hands tighten on the steering wheel and you feel your heart begin to beat faster.
The police officer approaches you vehicle and comes to your window and asks to see your driver's license and registration. you take you driver's license out of your wallet and and reach into the glove compartment for your vehicle registration. The next thing you know the police officer is inquiring have you been drinking.
How you react in the next couple of seconds can change your life in ways one can not possibly imagine. Knowing exactly what to do and what exactly your legal rights are is of the utmost importance.
The first rule is to be courteous. Absolutely no matter what you do, or even what you say, refrain from getting in to a verbal fight with the officer. The officer has the discretion to arrest you and take you to jail or to let you proceed driving down the street. Even though being courteous will not assure your being permitted to continue along your way, becoming confrontational will certainly earn you a trip to jail.
Whenever the police officer asks you if you have been drinking, the ideal response is to tell the truth. In the event that you have been drinking alcohol the police officer will smell the odor of an alcoholic drink on your breath. Any kind of answer other than the actual truth will destroy your credibility with the police officer. Understand that it is not against the law to have a beer or some other alcoholic beverage and then get behind the wheel of your automobile. It only becomes unlawful if you have lost the normal use of your psychological or physical ability.
Following establishing the fact that you have consumed alcoholic beverages, the law enforcement officer will ask you exactly what you had to drink as well as how much you drank. At this stage you really should ask the police officer if you are under arrest. If the answer is no, subsequently tell the police officer without sounding rude that you would choose not to answer any more questions without first speaking to an lawyer.
Keep in mind the only question that you are required to answer is an identification question. As soon as you have handed the police officer your driver's license and registration you have responded to that question. Whenever the police officer asks you questions he is trying to smell the odor of an alcoholic drink on your breath or even to collect additional evidence that can be used against you.
In the event that the police officer states he or she is going to arrest you or even if he or she becomes hateful, don't forget to remain relaxed and collected. Your own temperament will speak volumes on a video recording of the stop.
If the police officer request you to get out of the vehicle, without sounding rude ask why. If he or she says they want you to carry out a series of tests so that they can decide whether or not you're okay to operate a automobile, politely decline his / her offer. Mainly because, by the time the police officer asks a driver to get out of their vehicle, they have already made up their mind to arrest the driver for driving under the influence.
Once again the police officer will ask you to exit the vehicle. Slowly step out of the vehicle. Do not not lean against the car or truck when getting out or when standing.
Should the police officer place you under arrest, he or she will request that you blow into the breath testing device. if you refuse it could result in a driver's license suspension, nevertheless if the police officer asks you to blow, you are already under arrest. Blowing into the device will only give the law enforcement officer and the prosecution evidence they would not otherwise have.
By following this course of action might not keep you from being arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, it will certainly keep the state from collecting evidence to use against you in court. Maintaining your cool can make the difference between an acquittal and a conviction for driving under the influence.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/rss.jpg "XML Feed For RSS")