While we all agree that drinking and driving is a bad idea, there are times when we should fight against unfair police practices that use unreliable field sobriety tests.
Field sobriety tests have been used all over the country for many years as a quick roadside method to determine if a driver is under the influence of alcohol or drugs. However, these tests have been proven unreliable over the years, even though the National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration (NHSTA) tried to standardize the types of tests given and the methods used.
Perhaps for this reason, Georgia drivers are not required by law to submit to these tests—we recommend that you do not.
Richard Belcher, an investigative journalist with WSBTV in Atlanta, looked into the validity of Georgia field sobriety tests in 2011. What he found was disturbing, but a good warning to anyone pulled over and suspected of driving under the influence (DUI).
According to Belcher’s report, there are many critics of field sobriety testing. Dr. Spurgeon Cole, a retired Clemson University psychology professor has been studying these tests since the 1980s.
Professor Cole said, “I would never recommend anyone take a field sobriety test. It is designed to fail. It’s designed to fail. There are no norms, there is no average score. We have no idea what the average person could do on the one leg with the heel to toe.”
He is very skeptical about the validity of the tests and added, “If you use all of them, and do them right, you are only 26% better than chance, 74% as much error as you would be if you just randomly guessed.”
Many agree with Cole’s estimation of the situation. Some say that using field sobriety tests is no different than flipping a coin, with a 50-50 chance of being right. In fact, the NHTSA itself found that 47% of police officers, after viewing field sobriety tests, were incorrect in identifying the intoxicated drivers.
Call an Alpharetta DUI attorney at the Law Office of Scott Miller if you have been accused of a northern Georgia DUI based on the results of field sobriety testing. We can help you sort out the details of your case and launch a strong defense on your behalf.
