• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

DWI arrest with NO ALCOHOL or DRUGS just tired

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

Status
Not open for further replies.
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Louisiana

Hi,my son does not do drugs or alcohol ,he works hard at his job.He is 19 and on 3/28/2012 he was at work all day and at 12 am he was pulled over for going over the line. the officer asked him what have you been drinking and he said nothing .He told officer that he drank chocolate milk before work at work he drank nesquick ,he drank water after work and drank a coke at a restaurant. the officer asked him what drugs did he take and he said none.
they searched the car found NO DRUGS OR ALCOHOL ! they insisted he was on drugs so they gave him a sobriety test,he failed because he was tired.
so they arrested him ,gave him a breath test 00000 ,he passed so they say you have to do a urine test but that TAKES SEVERAL WEEKS TO GET BACK.
They lock him up and he knows he does not do drugs or alcohol!
we had to borrow the money to bail him out,he was in jail for 12 hours,they said on DWI charge you have to stay in jail for 8 hours.
They took his drivers license and they posted his mug shot online. we got our own urine test done at a hospital(RIGHT AFTER HE BAILED OUT) within 25 minutes ,it said NEGATIVE for all drugs. we took it to the police station TO THEIR FACE :) and showed them the test say NEGATIVE.
they told us the officer was an "expert in the drug field",I told them he is NO EXPERT WHEN HE PUTS INNOCENT PEOPLE IN JAIL!
it seems to me that it is a civil rights violation that they would make someone(my son) wait SEVERAL WEEKS to get urine test results back when I got mine in 25 minutes at a hospital.I had to pay $129 for it.
what about people who cannot afford bail and they have to sit in jail because some idiot cop accuses them of being on drugs!
Does anybody know any civil rights attorneys that would check into this?What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
 


Silverplum

Senior Member
This is not an attorney referral service.

There's a link at the bottom of each page here that reads, "To locate an attorney visit AttorneyPages.com."

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Louisiana
{snip}
Does anybody know any civil rights attorneys that would check into this?
 
forgot to mention that he is still being charged with DWI and he has no drivers license and I guess he has to go through the state to get it back?
I gave an officer a copy of the Negative urine test to put in the so called "experts" box. but I have to wait for him to do all his paperwork to give a copy to the city attorney's office.
any advice?
where would I go to find a civil rights attorney ,I do not think a local attorney would want to check into this but I do not know.
 

CSO286

Senior Member
forgot to mention that he is still being charged with DWI and he has no drivers license and I guess he has to go through the state to get it back?
I gave an officer a copy of the Negative urine test to put in the so called "experts" box. but I have to wait for him to do all his paperwork to give a copy to the city attorney's office.
any advice?
where would I go to find a civil rights attorney ,I do not think a local attorney would want to check into this but I do not know.
Click the find a lawyer link.

And, no your son's civil rights were not violated.

He was driving erractically and the officer suspected that the young adult was under the influence of something. He was protecting the general public from your son at that moment.
 

Mass_Shyster

Senior Member
Get a lawyer.

From what I've found (which is internet based so is probably wrong)

"where a person is arrested for drunk driving and gives a test that is below .05%, the person is presumed not to be driving under the influence of alcohol."

I also found reference to a hearing within 15 days to get the license back.

If you google "driving while tired", you'll see it's considered be many to be as dangerous as driving while intoxicated.
 

CSO286

Senior Member
OP, even if he was clear for alcohol, there's no field test for drug use, and a sleepy driver is equally [or more] impaired than a drunk or high driver.
 

Antigone*

Senior Member
Why does this adult think it is okay to drive without a license? He may not have been drunk or on drugs, but he was definitely impaired.
 

CdwJava

Senior Member
It is also important to note that even hospital tox screens do NOT test for any and all impairing substances. And after 12 hours, if he had been under the influence of certain types of substances, they would not have been apparent in a urine test.

So, the key evidence for the state will be the training and experience of the officer who conducted the evaluation and the officer who contacted the defendant (if they were not the same officer).

It is, however, likely that if the drug screen the police sent off comes back negative that the prosecutor will not pursue the matter for the impaired driving due to there being a good argument for reasonable doubt even though the tox screen does not test for everything.

He doesn't need a civil rights attorney, he needs a criminal defense attorney. The police are permitted to make an arrest based upon articulable probable cause to believe he was operating a motor vehicle while impaired. This does not mean absolute and irrefutable proof, only that there exists a better than reasonable belief that he was impaired. It seems that the officer is supposed to be well-trained, conducted the evaluation, and determined he was impaired. And, if the officer is a DRE (Drug Recognition Expert), then he WILL know the difference between impairment and sleepiness. If he is just an experienced officer with FST training, then the office might be seen as more likely to make such a mistake. Though, even that kind of a mistake would be very difficult.

I'd like to see the officer evaluation report because THAT will be key to whether or the signs and symptoms were consistent with impairment or exhaustion.
 
WHAT ????
he wasn't sleepy he was just tired from working all day, DUH

He does have a valid drivers license THE COP TOOK IT ,DUH

so your saying if your tire goes on the white line ,you are driving erratically,HA HA HA

it is a violation when they can do a urine test within hours to see if you have drugs in your system but they make you WAIT SEVERAL WEEKS and make you bail out .CAN YOU SAY EXTORTION!!!!

yall are something else,I will get advice somewhere else
 

Antigone*

Senior Member
WHAT ????
he wasn't sleepy he was just tired from working all day, DUH

He does have a valid drivers license THE COP TOOK IT ,DUH

so your saying if your tire goes on the white line ,you are driving erratically,HA HA HA

it is a violation when they can do a urine test within hours to see if you have drugs in your system but they make you WAIT SEVERAL WEEKS and make you bail out .CAN YOU SAY EXTORTION!!!!

yall are something else,I will get advice somewhere else
Look mom, you said this: Forgive me if I misunderstood it a bit.

forgot to mention that he is still being charged with DWI and he has no drivers license and I guess he has to go through the state to get it back?
Your attitude would not be so cavalier if you have a child or loved one killed or badly hurt by a "just" sleepy or tired driver.

<spit> tigi.
 
so your saying they can treat people like this ? what if someone has a medical problem? He was not impaired he does NOT DO DRUGS. and everybody he knows ,knows that!
IT CAN HAPPEN TO YOU!
I would like to see them not charge anybody with a crime until after they get the urine test back. If they have suspicions write a summons and when the person goes to court the urine test would be back to prove whether they can charge with a crime.
This is not right to treat our young people like this who work hard and stay away from drugs and alcohol!!!!
 

CdwJava

Senior Member
WHAT ????
he wasn't sleepy he was just tired from working all day, DUH
Then it would be even LESS likely to be confused with impairment. He should go with "sleepy."

it is a violation when they can do a urine test within hours to see if you have drugs in your system but they make you WAIT SEVERAL WEEKS and make you bail out .CAN YOU SAY EXTORTION!!!!
It is neither "a violation" nor extortion. It's the nature of the process and the availability of resources. Do you have any idea how much it would cost the state to have the capability of processing these samples within, say, even 48 hours? It is not like he is held in custody the entire time.

Your son needs legal counsel. If we all jumped up and down, beat our chest, and railed against the fascist police state, how would that help your son? It might make you feel better, but it would not help his legal situation one iota.

The arrest was based upon probable cause. That's perfectly lawful. The test might take weeks to come back. That's standard. Your hospital test of him came back negative after sometime over 12 hour after the initial contact. That's not necessarily going to be relevant at all.

As I mentioned, if the state's tox screen comes back negative, chances are there will be no charges filed. If there are, then they will be basing their case on the training and experience of the officer. If he is a DRE with a good deal of experience, it might be tough to beat, but not impossible. A decent attorney would know how to cast reasonable doubt into the mix and the presence of a negative screen might go a long way to raising that reasonable doubt even though the standard screens do not detect most the synthetics that are out there.

So, if you want to do your son any good, calm down, listen, and understand that the law is about the process and not emotion. Nothing appears to have been done wrong here, so unless your son can prove that the officer arrested him KNOWING full well that there was no grounds to do so, no civil rights case is to be had here.
 
I am thinking that most people know that when they charge you with DWI they take your license!

oh my goodness! probably most everybody on the roads are tired ,they DRIVE HOME FROM WORK!!!
My husband works nights and had to DRIVE and hour and half to bail my son out .MY HUSBAND HAD NO SLEEP!!!!!
My son was in my car so we had no choice but my husband drive WITH NO SLEEP!!!
Let it happen to you and what are you going to say!!! I'm innocent,do you think the so called "experts" will care, NO
 

Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
so your saying they can treat people like this ? what if someone has a medical problem? He was not impaired he does NOT DO DRUGS. and everybody he knows ,knows that!
IT CAN HAPPEN TO YOU!
I would like to see them not charge anybody with a crime until after they get the urine test back. If they have suspicions write a summons and when the person goes to court the urine test would be back to prove whether they can charge with a crime.
This is not right to treat our young people like this who work hard and stay away from drugs and alcohol!!!!
He WAS impaired, per your own post. Just not by drugs or alcohol.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top