Field Sobriety Tests - FSTs

After you have been stopped and/or contacted by a police officer or sheriff’s deputy and he/she suspects you have been drinking alcoholic beverages and driving, you will usually be asked to step out of your vehicle and perform a series of field sobriety tests (FST’s). You will generally be asked to perform three or four of the standard FST’s listed below. While performing the FST’s are optional, most officers don’t inform people of that fact and if you are viewing our website, you have probably done them anyway.

Some commonly used FST’s:

Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (following a stimulus such as a finger or penlight with your eyes)
Rhomberg (closing your eyes while tilting your head back and estimating 30 seconds…indicating the 30 seconds are up by opening your eyes and lifting your head)
Walk and Turn (taking 9 steps heel to toe on a straight line, turning and repeating)
Finger to Nose (with closed eyes and extended arms you are asked to touch the tip of your nose with fingerpads)
One Leg Stand (standing on one leg, raise the other foot for 30 seconds while keeping arms flat at your side)
Finger Count (you are asked to count every time you touch your thumb to each of your other 4 fingers & then you count backwards while doing the same)

Often, people don’t feel comfortable with how they may perform on one or more of the FST’s that they did for many different reasons. For example, women often feel uncomfortable performing FST’s in heels, and may not want to perform them barefoot outdoors either. There are many reasons you can give to avoid taking these FST’s. And, the less evidence the prosecution and DMV has against you, the stronger your defense will generally be. Be aware, however, that regardless of how you may think you performed, the only way to find out what your defending against is to actually see what is written in the investigating officer’s report. Don’t be surprised to see things you don’t think you actually did either. When an officer is performing a DUI investigation, he/she is looking for more that you think they are and you will be surprised to see what actually appears in their report! For these reasons, you need an experienced and knowledgeable lawyer reviewing those reports.

Call or fill out our online contact form to have a skilled attorney from WILL & WILL, LLP discuss your case with you.

Field Sobriety Tests - FSTs

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