dealing with police

avoiding traffic stops & dui arrests

Even if you're on this website because you've already been arrested for DUI, take a few minutes to read this page, and then read it again. These suggestions are provided to help you significantly, if not dramatically, reduce your chances of ever being arrested for DUI again. Not every suggestion will be appropriate or useful in every situation, but you'll know enough to survive a brush with police without mistakenly contributing to your own arrest.

best prevention & #1 objective is avoiding a stop

prevent probable cause to pull you over

I. ATTENTION TO PROPER VEHICLE MAINTENANCE

• Perform a complete walk-around vehicle check once per week :

• Rear brake lights (you'll need another person to assist you)
• Front and rear tail lights
• Front headlights, be sure your high beams are in OFF position
• Right & left turn signals, front and rear
• Check lights on front and rear license plates
• Rearview & side mirrors
• Tires & wheels
• Windshield wipers & defogger
• Check all windows for small cracks & chips
• Wipe license plates clean, front & back
• Ensure license plate registration tags are intact & current
• Check under the vehicle for debris and oil spills & fluid leaks
• Check exhaust muffler for smoke & odor from
• Keep your vehicle clean inside & out
• Be sure nothing is hanging from the rear view mirror

II. AVOID DRIVING BEHAVIOR POLICE ASSOCIATE WITH DUI

• Obey all traffic laws and always drive as if a cop is behind you:

• Swerving & riding lane lines, drifting
• Driving at 10 mph or more below the speed limit
• Stopping sporadically or abruptly for no apparent reason
• Inconsistent maintenance of speed, accelerating and decelerating sporadically
• Following too closely, or tailgating
• Braking haphazardly or in too short of time
• Driving in the wrong direction toward oncoming traffic
• Poor response to traffic signals and roadway obstacles
• Conflicting and inappropriate signalling, ie, signal right but turn left
• Driving at night without headlignts turned on
• Poor body posture, slumping in seat, head held in lazy manner
• Visual fixation, eyes fail to scan perimeter at natural intervals
• Turning with an excessively wide circumference
• Looks physically intoxicated and disheveled, slovenly
• Making illegal and sudden turns, reacting abruptly
• Gripping hands tensely around wheel
• Sudden and erratic movement
• Driving with face within inches of windshield, leaning forward
• Narrowly missing roadway obstacles or merging traffic

III. BEHAVIOR & HABIT MODIFICATION

• Cops scan certain streets and areas looking for DUI suspects after sundown:

• Most DUI arrests occur between 9 pm and 3 am, avoid driving at these times if possible
• Alter your route, when possible, to avoid roads near nightclubs and taverns
• Take a cab, or arrange alternate transportation
• Enlist a sober friend or relative to drive at night
• Ride the trolley when frequenting downtown & the Gaslamp
• Avoid common speedtrap areas and Interstate 15
• Designate a driver when frequenting Viejas & attending sporting events
• Drive with your car windows mostly open to ventilate your vehicle
• Keep your license, registration, and insurance readily accessible to avoid fumbling
• Chew raw cloves if you think you could be near 08%. Keep cloves in your vehicle

managing a traditional traffic stop

First the lights, then the sirens, and suddenly you're being stopped. Calmy turn on your blinker and safely pull over to the side of the road. Turn off the ignition, stay in your vehicle, and if it is nighttime, turn on the interior light inside your vehicle to allow the officer to see you. Place both hands on the steering wheel at the 12 o'clock position, and wait for the officer to approach your window.

stay closemouthed! don't chit chat with police

Staying tightlipped, from beginning to end, and remaining completely nonconversant, is the single most important thing you can do to improve your situation. Suppression of any answers, or words for that matter, will increase the chances you will freely walk away. Be completely non-talkative. The officer has no right to ask you where you've been, where you're going, what you've eaten, why you're driving, nor anything else. You are absolutely not required to provide any information with the exception of establishing your identity and address (via your driver's license), and providing proof of insurance and registration. That's it, and the absolute extent of what you should communicate to police.

limit your statements to these 5 phrases:

DO NOT STRAY FROM THESE 5 CANNED STATEMENTS:

1. Information Required by Law:

I. Your identity: name, address, and date of birth - Simply present your driver's license. Let the cop ask you if the address listed is current. The appropriate two-word response is: "Yes Sir"

II. You must also provide proof of insurance and vehicle registration, in addition to your license.

2. That's it! You're Done. You've met the legal requirements: If handled properly, you've used only two words up to this point: "Yes, Sir"

3. Averting Interrogation & Remaining Silent: If you were stopped at a DUI checkpoint, you may be cleared to leave at this point. However, if you've been singled out and pulled over, the officer will either (a) inform you of why he or she stopped you, or (b) use an interrogative approach. Please see below:

a) If the officer claims to have noticed something illegal or suspicious, there is no need for you to speak or verbally respond as the cop reviews your mistake, ie, illegal lane change, broken tail light, etc. Communicate only through eye contact and body language, ie, nod, be attentive, etc.

b) Perhaps the officer prefers to question you rather than issue the ticket and move on? If this is the case, respond to the officer's interrogation using the statements listed below - answering his questions with a question to maintain control of the conversation and exercise your right to remain silent. Under no uncertain terms do you owe the police ANY information.

Choose from these phrases and responses:

I. "Am I free to leave now?"

II. "Would you like to see my driver's license again?"

III. "With all due respect, I choose to only answer questions required by law"

IV. "May I call my attorney if questioning is going to continue?"

4. I thru IV, in addition to "yes, sir", comprise a 5 phrase vocabulary for protecting your legal rights in the absence of an attorney. If you are still being detained at this point, you may choose to begin repeating and rotating the 4 phrases above. I.e., again ask "am I free to leave now?". You should not be detained longer than 20 minutes, maximum, and should be either dismissed or arrested without unreasonable delay.

keep the officer's flashlight away from your face !

DO speak up and instruct the officer to keep the flashlight outside of your vehicle (vs. thrusting it through an open window) and away from your person and face. Police often conceal a passive alcohol sensory device inside of their flashlight. They will then attempt to casually wave the flashlight, or other disguising object, arournd your mouth to seize a sample of your breath and sneak an alcohol reading. The preliminary alcohol sensory device, or PAS, unlike a traditional breathalyzer, does not require the subject to voluntarily blow into the object or willingly and cognizantly provide a BAC sample. The PAS is neither mandatory, admissible in court, nor reliable. Cops like it because it allows them to pick up small traces of alcohol they wouldn't otherwise detect without taking a driver into custody. Protect your personal space accordingly.

never consent to a search of your vehicle & property

If police are persistent in their requests to search your vehicle, respond by asking the officer(s) to clarify exactly what he or she expects to find. If the officer cannot clearly pinpoint what crime or contraband they suspect you're concealing, it is a good indication they significantly lack probable cause.

if you are asked to step out of the car...

You will need to cooperate and exit the vehicle. Ensure your car windows are closed and swiftly exit with your keys in hand, locking your car behind you. This will help protect you from an illegal search of your property. At this point, the officer's motive is to either search your vehicle, or persuade you to submit to roadside field sobriety tests. Possibly both. DON'T CONSENT TO EITHER.

do not submit to any field sobriety tests - NONE!

The roadside acrobatics and goofy exercises (SFST'S) are completely voluntary, baseless, unreliable, and serve only one purpose, and that is to help the officer formulate probable cause and build up a case against you. The field sobriety tests are neither recognized by the courts nor admissible as evidence. They assist police in making more arrests, period. Politely decline as long as your are at least 21 years old. (Minors under 21 must comply under California's zero tolerance laws)

firmly ask police officers if you are free to leave

If you passively accept your detainment and appear to be cooperative with police, rather than courteously requesting that you be freed to leave, the police will claim you were "volunteering" to continue their process rather than being "hindranced" or "delayed". Be firm, persistent, and polite in requesting permission to leave.