In most cases, an individual is stopped on suspicion of a DWI and given Standard Field Sobriety Tests. On occasion, these tests are omitted, usually if doing them at the scene would be a safety issue (think heavy traffic, a severely impaired driver, or an unruly crowd or crowded area).
If the officer believes he has probable cause for an arrest (not a conviction but an arrest) the individual is arrested and asked to provide a blood or breath sample. Very often (because juries much prefer blood tests) the individual is asked for a blood sample. If the individual agrees, he is transported to a local hospital for a blood draw. If he does not, a warrant is prepared and sent to a local magistrate on duty and a warrant for the blood is obtain and the individual is taken to the hospital for a blood draw.
Once the blood draw is complete, the blood is sent to the local state lab for testing, which can, depending on backlog, take weeks or months. In the meantime, the individual is booked into jail, magistrated, given a bond amount, posts bond and waits for a court setting. If the person is well known, the fact of the arrest are plastered everywhere even though he hasn’t been convicted of anything yet.
Once the blood results come back, a prosecutor takes a look at offense reports, any video the officer has/provides, and the lab results and makes a determination if he has sufficient evidence to prove to the jury the individual’s guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. In some counties and states, the charges have already been prepared and the case is dismissed at this time. If charges were filed and the blood alcohol content is very high, the charges are amended at this time to reflect a greater offense charge due to the higher BAC. In other states, the charge would not be prepared until this time so if the state does not intend to proceed, they refuse charges.
This, under normal circumstances can take weeks or months.
This is neither an injustice or falsification of evidence but the way things actually work in the real world not a 30 - 60 minute crime drama on TV.
Yeah yeah - completely ignoring the fact that they charged him with DWI BEFORE having the evidence?
Or is that because the prosecutors watched too much CSI Las Vegas too?
Good post. Only clarification I would make is that field sobriety tests are often not done because the driver refuses to take them, which is totally legal. In fact, Bruce refused to take them in this case. Field sobriety tests are designed to make people fail. Only take them if you are absolutely certain that you are significantly under the limit.