Quick Questions on DUI

[shaq786]

1. I'm in the state of GA, if I'm drunk and know I can't drive after the club, can I just sleep in the back seat of my car and throw my keys in the passenger side(away from me) for the night? This would be in a 24 hour parking lot. Could they get me for public drunkeness instead of a DUI?

2. I'm thinking about investing into one of these. BACtrack Select S50 Breathalyzer
What do you guys think about that device?

3. Does taking down water before a breathalyzer help you cheat the test?

 

[Isis1]

1. I'm in the state of GA, if I'm drunk and know I can't drive after the club, can I just sleep in the back seat of my car and throw my keys in the passenger side(away from me) for the night? This would be in a 24 hour parking lot. Could they get me for public drunkeness instead of a DUI?

2. I'm thinking about investing into one of these. BACtrack Select S50 Breathalyzer
What do you guys think about that device?

3. Does taking down water before a breathalyzer help you cheat the test?

no one here will tell you how to cheat a breathalyzer. at least not anyone with ethics.

do not sleep in your car. because it will not be known how you got there whether you were drunk prior, whether you drove or drove back. even if you won a charge, you'd still have an arrest on your record.

take a cab. seriously. don't be stupid.

 

[Cali408nia]

1. I'm in the state of GA, if I'm drunk and know I can't drive after the club, can I just sleep in the back seat of my car and throw my keys in the passenger side(away from me) for the night? This would be in a 24 hour parking lot. Could they get me for public drunkeness instead of a DUI?

2. I'm thinking about investing into one of these. BACtrack Select S50 Breathalyzer
What do you guys think about that device?

3. Does taking down water before a breathalyzer help you cheat the test?

I'll let someone else answer #1. For your 2nd question, I can't speak to the accuracy or quality of that device but keep in mind that you can still get a DUI and be below .08 in most (if not every) state. .08 is where you are by definition legally drunk no matter how you act. Below .08 you can still get a DUI for being intoxicated on any substance, including alcohol. The device might be nice to have just so you know how much or how drunk you have to feel to be legally drunk but just because you blow a .07 on it wouldn't mean you're totally in the clear.

On #3, no, water nor any other remedy will help you cheat the test. Water, like any other diuretic, can help your body pee out the alcohol faster which may help you sober up a little quicker. But drinking it right before a breathalyzer wouldn't help.

 

[shaq786]

My next question is what are the criteria for getting a DUI when your below 0.08????

When I drive with a few drinks in me (assuming I'm below 0.08) I have no problems.

 

[HighwayMan]

My next question is what are the criteria for getting a DUI when your below 0.08????

Articulation of intoxication, i.e. the arresting officer's observations of your behavior, you movements, your SFST results, etc. You do NOT need to blow a .08 to be convicted of drunk driving.

When I drive with a few drinks in me (assuming I'm below 0.08) I have no problems.

You are hardly a good judge of you "having no problems". And not being intoxicated does not mean you are not impaired.

 

[HighwayMan]

3. Does taking down water before a breathalyzer help you cheat the test?

No.

And you will not be permitted to eat or drink anything prior to a breath test.

 

[Cali408nia]

My next question is what are the criteria for getting a DUI when your below 0.08????

There's really a number of things. From the second the officer decides to pull you over, he's observing your actions and responses. His first hint may have been the way you were driving. When he gets to the car, he's asking questions and observing your responses. Then of course he can administer field sobriety tests which can help him further gather evidence. There are a number of things that could lead him to believe you are impaired without you being legally intoxicated. If you are really not impaired after a couple of drinks then you shouldn't have a problem.

There's a wealth of information about what things people have tried to beat the breathalyzer and other various aspects of how a DUI is determined in this thread which I found pretty informative: http://community.discovery.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/7501919888/m/4961987429

 

[DUIAttyPCho]

To anwer your questions:

1) Each State law varies on what is acceptable and what is not acceptable as far as sleeping in the car, and if it is a valid way to avoid DUI or not. For example, what you describe in California would be an acceptable way to avoid a DUI. I've done what you did once before in Los Angeles, and the police just did a welfare check on me, told me to lock the door for my safety, and told me to go back to sleep. I don't know what the law is in Georgia regarding your question. It is best to call a Georgia attorney to see if what you describe is a valid way of avoiding a DUI in your State.

2) I don't recommend that you get a breathalizer period. The ones they sell to the general public aren't that accurate. The ones they sell that are certified for by CHP, they don't sell to the general public. They only sell to agencies and to private attorneys. And, they cost in the few thousands.

3) No, there is no way to beat the breathalyzer. And even if there was, I wouldn't be able to tell you.

 

[shaq786]

Did a google search...those seem like some pretty hard test even for a sober person because even as a sober person I have to hear it twice or ask a question before doing it right.

 

[HighwayMan]

What test is that? The breath test? Or the SFST?

Neither is hard. Those being tested are allowed to ask questions and clarify exactly what is expected of them. That is not an excuse for not doing well on them, i.e. you'll look like a fool if you walk into court and say that the reason you "failed" was because the tests are too hard.

 

[shaq786]

Neither is hard. Those being tested are allowed to ask questions and clarify exactly what is expected of them. That is not an excuse for not doing well on them, i.e. you'll look like a fool if you walk into court and say that the reason you "failed" was because the tests are too hard.

Refusing Georgia Field Sobriety Tests - YouTube

DUI Field Tests Are Designed To Fail - YouTube

Some interesting videos for you. I'm not saying your wrong and I'm right.

 

[CdwJava]

There are a great number of people that make a living out of disputing the SFSTs, and arguing that DUI is not that big a deal.

Any test open to subjective interpretation can be flawed. When done properly, the test is NOT subjective, but provides for objective clues that are either present or not present.

The study where officers viewed video and about half made the wrong call is, as I recall, not a valid study for a number of reasons. Who were the officers? How much experience did they have? What perspective were the videos from? Were they from police cars? Were they staged? What? And could the viewing officers see the eyes? Smell the breath? Did the video include the supplemental questions?

There are a lot of variables that can come in to play.

In any event, if one chooses to fight a DUI the most susceptible aspect is the reasonable suspicion for the stop followed by the probable cause for the arrest. Though it is the STOP that can be more vulnerable and the most effective because if the stop is tossed, then everything else goes away.

 

[slwslw]

Georgia code

Georgia DUI code

§ 40-6-391. Driving under the influence of alcohol, drugs, or other intoxicating substances; penalties; publication of notice of conviction for persons convicted for second time; endangering a child


(a) A person shall not drive or be in actual physical control of any moving vehicle while:

(1) Under the influence of alcohol to the extent that it is less safe for the person to drive;

The way I read Georgia law, you could be sitting behind the wheel with the car running, while drunk, and still not be in violation, so long as the car is not moving.

I'd double check with a Georgia Lawyer though, because in many states, just having access to the keys, even if you're passed out in a puddle of puke beside the car, will still get you pinched by the police.

Have the bartender keep the keys til next day or have someone take them from you.

*********************
§ 16-11-41. Public drunkenness


(a) A person who shall be and appear in an intoxicated condition in any public place or within the curtilage of any private residence not his own other than by invitation of the owner or lawful occupant, which condition is made manifest by boisterousness, by indecent condition or act, or by vulgar, profane, loud, or unbecoming language, is guilty of a misdemeanor.

(b) This Code section shall not be construed to affect the powers delegated to counties or to municipal corporations to pass laws to punish drunkenness or disorderly conduct within their respective limits.

 

[dave33]

There are a great number of people that make a living out of disputing the SFSTs, and arguing that DUI is not that big a deal.

Any test open to subjective interpretation can be flawed. When done properly, the test is NOT subjective, but provides for objective clues that are either present or not present.
[
/QUOTE]

Come on Carl, you know that is b.s. It is all interpretation. Maybe even what an officer feels like doing. "Objective clues" can be different given different circumstances blah, blah,blah...

 

[dave33]

There are a lot of variables that can come in to play.

Yea, yea, yea. That's the problem, unlimited "variables".