| Mar 4, 2026 | Case: 25-CT-003479 | Judge D. Steele |
| Facts: | The defendant was the at fault driver in a rear end crash. Officers observed an odor, bloodshot eyes, and heavily slurred speech. He also leaned on his vehicle for support. The defendant refused to perform any field sobriety tests and was arrested for DUI. He later refused a breath test. This was his second DUI arrest. | |
| Defense: | Parks & Braxton filed a motion to exclude the field sobriety tests as the defendant was not advised of any adverse consequences. When a defendant refuses to perform field sobriety tests, an officer must advise them of adverse consequences or the refusal will be excluded from evidence. The officer must state something like "your refusal can be used against you in court", or "I will have to make my decision to arrest based on what I've seen so far." Here, there were no adverse consequences. We also filed a motion to exclude all the defendant's statements as they were taken in violation of the accident report privilege. On the day of the motion hearing, the State Dropped the DUI. | |
| Result: | The State dropped the DUI. | |