Sadler Law Group has Experience Defending those Accused of Driving under the Influence (DUI)
A conviction for driving under the influence (DUI) can have a severe impact on your life including jail time and a damaged reputation. Moreover, you stand to lose your driving privileges furthering jeopardizing your employment and/or schooling.
The Penalties for a DUI are Harsh because the Crime can have Outsized Consequences
While having “a couple of drinks” may feel innocent, if those drinks impair your motor skills you now become a danger to all those on the road. It is because you are driving a one-ton battering ram that the State of Connecticut treats this crime so harshly, even if you manage to avoid the worst.
What to Expect – Field Sobriety Test
The first interaction prior to a DUI arrest is often the Standardized Field Sobriety Test (SFST), a series of three (3) separate assessments following a traffic stop. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) defines the three parts:
- Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN) test: The officer will check for indications that you lack the ability to follow an object smoothly, or that your eyes begin an involuntary jerking motion at maximum deviation, or at an angle prior to 45 degrees of center.
- Walk-and-Turn Test: A straight line walk of nine total steps, touching heel-to-toe, before turning on one foot and returning in the same manner. An officer checks to see if you followed directions, stopped and started, lost balance, began before told to, stepped off the line, walked an improper number of steps, or improperly turned.
- One-Leg Stand Test: An officer will ask you to stand on one foot for thirty (30) seconds while counting aloud. They will check for swaying, use of arms to balance, hopping, or putting your foot down.
These tests are wrong at least 10% of the time and can be influenced by disabilities like deafness, knee problems, and the like.
The Breathalyzer
You are likely to be asked to take a breathalyzer test. In the State of Connecticut, you can refuse to take the test, but doing so will result in an automatic license suspension from the DMV, with each successive refusal resulting in harsher DMV penalties.
The purpose of the breathalyzer is to measure the alcohol level that is in the blood by measuring the concentration of alcohol emitted from the lung’s air sacs (alveoli). Though several models of breathalyzers exist, all use a system to sample the breath of the driver, glass vials containing chemical mixture, and a system of photocells to measure the color change in the chemical mixture.
If the device registers .08 or above you will be charged with driving under the influence.
Contact Sadler Law Group to Discuss your Criminal Charges
If you have been charged with Connecticut General Statute 14-227a, operation while under the influence, you should contact an experienced DUI attorney. To schedule a time to speak with a criminal defense lawyer fill out the Request a Call form below.
