| Oct 26, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-009975 | Judge Conrad |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for speeding. The officer noticed an odor of alcohol, bloodshot eyes, and heavily slurred speech. The defendant also had trouble locating his wallet and other items. After performing poorly on roadside tests, he was arrested for DUI. He later blew a .177 and .171 in the breath machine. | |
| Defense: | After several discussions with the State regarding the evidence, the State Dropped the DUI. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
Parks & Braxton, PA: Brevard DUI Lawyer
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OUR RECENT VICTORIES
| Oct 25, 2022 | Case: 21-CT-046294 | Judge Silverman |
| Facts: | The defendant was the at fault driver in a rear end crash. Officers noticed the defendant to have an odor of alcohol, a flushed face, and watery/glassy eyes. His speech was slurred and thick tongued and he appeared confused. He was asked to perform roadside tests but he refused. A vodka bottle was found in the defendant's vehicle. He was then arrested for DUI and later refused a breath test. This was the defendant's Second DUI. | |
| Defense: | If a defendant refuses to perform roadside tests, the officer must advise the defendant of the adverse consequences for refusing. If they do not, the refusal will be excluded from evidence. Here, the officer never advised the defendant of any adverse consequences. In addition, on tape, the defendant's speech appeared normal and he did not appear confused. | |
| Result: | The State Dropped the Defendant's Second DUI. | |
| Oct 24, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-006546 | Judge Bristow |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for weaving and driving on a flat tire. The officer noticed an odor of alcohol, slurred speech, and glossy eyes. He was unable to form a complete sentence and was crying. His motions were slow, he had difficulty following instructions, and admitted to having drank 3-4 Modelo beers. After performing very poorly on roadside tests, he was arrested for DUI. He later blew a .209 and .206 in the breath machine. | |
| Defense: | After several discussions with the State about various conflicts in the evidence, the State Dropped the DUI. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Oct 18, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-500635 | Judge Swett |
| Facts: | The defendant backed his car into another car in a bar parking lot. When officers arrived, they noticed he had an odor of alcohol, he stumbled, and also had to catch his balance. He had a flushed face, slurred speech, and was unable to form coherent sentences. He refused to perform field sobriety tests and was then arrested for DUI. A bar receipt was located which showed the defendant had purchased fireball shots. The defendant was then arrested for DUI. He later refused a breath test. This was the defendant's Third DUI. | |
| Defense: | Under Florida law, an officer must advise a defendant of any adverse consequences when a defendant refuses to perform roadside tests. Thus, the refusal to perform roadside tests would have been excluded from evidence. In addition, the firm had questioned the officer at the initial administrative DMV hearing. The firm ordered that testimony and many of the things that the officer testified to were contradicted by his police reports. Thus, his credibility was called into question. | |
| Result: | The State Dropped the defendant's Third DUI. | |
| Oct 17, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-006812 | Judge Conrad |
| Facts: | The defendant was found passed out and slumped over the wheel in his running vehicle in a bar parking lot. When officers awoke the defendant, they noticed an odor of alcohol, slurred speech, unsteady appearance, and bloodshot eyes. He admitted to having too much to drink and had vomited about 30 minutes ago. He then refused to perform roadside tests and was arrested for DUI. He later refused a breath test. | |
| Defense: | The defendant had walked out of the bar he had been drinking at and did the right thing by not driving and trying to sleep it off. Also, while sleeping, he had no capability to operate the car. Thus, he couldn't have been in actual physical control. On tape, he kept telling the police he was trying he do the right thing by not driving. After several discussions with the prosecutor, they Dismissed the DUI. | |
| Result: | The DUI was dismissed. | |
| Oct 12, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-030800 | Judge Silverman |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for almost causing an accident in a parking lot and then weaving. Officers noticed an odor of alcohol, bloodshot eyes, and slurred/incoherent speech. He appeared clumsy, stumbled, and swayed. He admitted to having consumed 3 drinks. He then performed various field sobriety tests and was arrested for DUI. He later blew a .164 and .159 in the breath machine. | |
| Defense: | After several conversations with the prosecutor about conflicts in the written evidence versus the video, as well as the defendant's personal history, the State Dropped the DUI. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Oct 11, 2022 | Case: AEBMQEE | Judge Lawhorne |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for driving with no headlights. The officer observed an odor of alcohol, bloodshot eyes, and he admitted to having drank wine. According to officer, he performed poorly on the roadside tests and was then arrested for DUI. He later refused the breath test. | |
| Defense: | The video tape contradicted the officer's reports. The defendant performed much better on the roadside tests on tape than as written. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Oct 11, 2022 | Case: AEBMSXE | Judge Lawhorne |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped after he hit a curb and drove up on a curbed median. The officer noticed an odor of alcohol, watery/gassy eyes, and a sway to his stance. The defendant's speech was slurred/mumbled and he also admitted to taking prescribed medicine. Due to safety reasons because of the defendant's impairment level, all the roadside tests were not performed. He was then arrested for DUI and later blew a .123 and .116 in the breath machine. | |
| Defense: | After several discussions with the prosecutor about the defendant's personal history and the evidence, the State Dropped the DUI. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Oct 4, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-001595 | Judge Oster |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for weaving. The officer observed an odor of alcohol, slurred speech, and bloodshot eyes. The defendant also admitted to having consumed alcohol earlier in the day. He then performed various field sobriety tests and was arrested for DUI. He later refused the breath test. | |
| Defense: | There was a lack of probable cause to arrest the defendant based on his performance on the field sobriety tests. The firm pointed this out to the State. They agreed and Dropped the DUI. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Oct 4, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-027353 | Judge Babb |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for swerving all over the road. Officers noticed an odor of alcohol, mumbling speech, and she was clumsy. She had trouble standing and almost fell getting out of the car. She also admitted to having drank White Claws. She performed poorly on roadside tests and was arrested for DUI. She later blew a .232 and .225 in the breath machine. | |
| Defense: | After several negotiations with the State about the defendant and the evidence, they Dropped the DUI. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Oct 3, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-000796 | Judge Wansboro |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for traveling southbound in the north bound lane. Officers noticed the defendant to have an odor of alcohol, slurred speech, and bloodshot eyes. The defendant had a hard time getting out of his car and used the car for balance. The defendant admitted to having drank wine. He then performed various field sobriety tests such as the walk and turn, one leg stand, and HGN (eye test). He was then arrested for DUI and later refused the breath test. | |
| Defense: | The defendant's video tape contradicted the officer's written observations and conclusions and his reports. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Sep 22, 2022 | Case: 22-MM-02314 | Judge Mkyton |
| Facts: | The defendant's boat was stopped for a safety inspection. The officer noticed an odor of alcohol and requested that the defendant perform roadside tests. At first he refused, then he agreed to perform various field sobriety tests used in boating under the influence case such as the finger to nose, palm pat, and hand coordination. He was then arrested for Boating Under the Influence and later refused the breath test. | |
| Defense: | Based on an odor of alcohol alone, there was no reasonable suspicion of a crime to believe that the defendant was operating his vessel while impaired to lawfully even request field sobriety tests. | |
| Result: | The State Dropped the BUI. | |
| Sep 22, 2022 | Case: AEX8ZDE | Judge Szematowicz |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for driving over 100 mph. The officer noticed bloodshot/watery eyes and eye lid tremors. He also had body tremors, a strong odor of burnt marijuana coming from this breath, and slurred speech. He was then asked to perform various roadside tests such as the HGN (eye test), one leg stand, walk and turn, and finger to nose. He also had the defendant estimate the passage of 30 seconds in his head otherwise known as the Rhomberg balance. He was then arrested for DUI and later refused a urine test. | |
| Defense: | The defendant had Delta 8 marijuana in his car which is legal. He stated that is all he uses. It was unknown whether he was impaired by the legal Delta 8 or the illegal Delta 9 marijuana. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Sep 20, 2022 | Case: 21-012854MU10A | Judge Solomon |
| Facts: | The defendant was involved in a crash whereby he hit a car and ended up colliding with a utility pole. Several officers arrived to conduct an accident investigation. At the same time, a deputy arrived to conduct a criminal investigation. On video, the deputy asked the defendant a series of questions. In response to questioning, the defendant acknowledged that he was the driver. The defendant performed extremely poorly on the roadside tests and was arrested for DUI. He was taken to the police station and blew a .219 and a .213 in the Intoxilyzer. This was the defendant's second DUI. | |
| Defense: | Parks & Braxton filed a motion to suppress based on an unlawful arrest. First, the firm filed a motion to exclude the defendant's statements because the deputy failed to read him his Maranda warnings. Next, counsel argued that pursuant to 316.645, the arresting deputy, who never spoke with the other civilians in the crash, had no probable cause to arrest the defendant. The motion was granted. All evidence was excluded. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Sep 20, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-003226 | Judge Conrad |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for speeding. The officer noticed an odor of alcohol, bloodshot/glassy eyes, and he displayed cognitive deficiencies. For example, he could not find his cell phone even though it was on his lap, and also was forgetful while speaking to the officer. The defendant appeared unsteady and swayed while he stood. He then performed poorly on the roadside tests and was arrested for DUI. He later refused the breath test. This was the defendant's Second DUI. | |
| Defense: | Many of the observations that the officer described in his reports were contradicted by the video tape. The State agreed and Dropped the defendant's Second DUI. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Sep 19, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-500946 | Judge M. Gonzalez |
| Facts: | The defendant was found by the police sitting in her car with the door open at a RaceTrac gas station. She had just thrown up outside the driver's door. Officers observed an odor of alcohol, vomit, watery eyes, and she was very confused. She swayed and had a dazed look. She then performed poorly on roadside tests and was arrested for DUI. She later refused a breath test. | |
| Defense: | The State could not prove the defendant was in actual physical control. The vehicle was a push-start and the key fob was on a seat. With those facts and the door being open, she had no "capability" to operate the car. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Sep 12, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-006112 | Judge Silver |
| Facts: | The police received a call from a Shell gas station that a customer's car had been stolen. The officer located the car in question and conducted a traffic stop. The defendant, who was the driver, appeared confused as to what was going on. She had an odor of alcohol, slurred/slow speech, and admitted to having drank vodka. She performed very poorly on roadside tests. The defendant could not say the alphabet correctly, stumbled all over the place on the walk and turn, and put her foot down numerous times on the one leg stand. She was arrested for DUI and later refused the breath test. | |
| Defense: | It was the defendant who actually called the police because she couldn't find her car. The gas station owner told the police that it was the owner's car and that she had found. This was prior to the traffic stop. On tape, the officer can be heard stating to another cop that he knew that, but just "wanted to verify." There was no lawful basis for the traffic stop once the officer is heard on tape stating he knew the defendant found her car and it was hers. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Sep 12, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-010522 | Judge Panse |
| Facts: | Officers located the defendant and her car parked at a 45 degree angle on the shoulder of a roadway. Officers had been dispatched to a BOLO about a car missing an entire left front tire and a seemingly impaired driver. Officers noticed the defendant to have an odor of alcohol, watery eyes, and a flushed face. She also had thick/slurred speech and didn't remember how the tire came off. She then performed various roadside tests such as the Rhomberg balance (estimate 30 seconds), alphabet, one leg stand, and walk and turn. She was then arrested for DUI and later refused the breath test. | |
| Defense: | When officers arrived, the defendant was standing at her back bumper. It could not be determined if there was a crash or not. Under Florida Statute 901.15, when there is no crash, an officer must observe all elements of the misdemeanor in their presence. (i.e. the defendant either driving and/or in actual physical control). If not, the arrest is unlawful. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Sep 8, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-009235 | Judge Booras |
| Facts: | The defendant was stopped for driving with no lights and swerving in and out of the lanes of travel. She also nearly struck a sign. The officer noticed an odor of alcohol, slow/unclear speech, and red/glassy eyes. She also appeared shaky on her feet. After performing various roadside tests, she was arrested for DUI and later blew a .187 and .182 in the breath machine. | |
| Defense: | After several conversations with the State regarding the evidence and the defendant herself, the State Dropped the DUI. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
| Sep 7, 2022 | Case: 22-CT-003506 | Judge Scott |
| Facts: | The defendant was found asleep in his car while it was running. Officers noticed an odor of alcohol, glassy eyes, and he appeared unsteady. Beer was also found in the car. He then performed various field sobriety tests such as the walk and turn and HGN (eye test). He was then arrested for DUI and later refused a breath test. | |
| Defense: | There was no video dash camera or body camera in the case. The reports were vaguely written and didn't provide many specifics. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |
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