| A
DUI case study posted by Florida
DUI Lawyer:
A Case Study on DUI Policy: Palm Beach
County Florida
Parks & Braxton,
your resource for a Florida
DUI Lawyer has reprinted this case study on
DUI policy in Palm Beach County Florida to demonstrate
why selecting the best Florida
DUI Defense Lawyer is essential:.
SFSTs are videotaped at the roadside if the patrol
vehicle is equipped to do so. A judge commented
that the videotapes were often of poor quality
due to poor technique and inadequate equipment,
but that good quality videotapes are effective
tools in court. She said another problem was the
long amount of time it takes the officer and suspect
to reach the "BAT cave" (sometimes 1.0-1.5
hours) because of the large area covered and few
testing stations. After that amount of time, the
suspect may not show as much impairment when videotaped
as when arrested. Thus, only the administration
of the BAT and related questioning are videotaped
in the "BAT cave."
A judge stated that police officers too frequently
ask questions by rote that often do not apply
and seem silly in context. Some officers do not
understand that questions provided on forms and
in manuals are intended only as guidelines.
Horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) is generally not
admissible in this jurisdiction because courts
believe it has to be administered under "controlled
conditions," requiring a "true expert."
Only two officers in Palm Beach County qualify
as HGN experts. An officer explains they can administer
HGN, but officers do not always understand the
relationship to impairment. This means they do
not know how to testify in court about the use
of HGN (and perhaps SFSTs). SFSTs are not convincing
to jurors who do not understand the relationship
of tests (called "exercises") to impairment.
Most appeals are DUI cases with trial error as
the main grounds for appeal (an estimated one
appeal for every six trials for all offenses including
DUI). Most convictions are upheld.
Read more of this case study posted by a Florida
DUI Lawyer.
Contact
Parks & Braxton ,
for a Broward DUI Lawyer
, a Dade DUI Lawyer ,
an Orange County DUI Lawyer
, or a Palm Beach DUI Lawyer
.
|
