It seems all the rage these days to get a couple DWIs on your record. We hear about this celebrity and that speeding around Hollywood hammered every day. It’s the best way to have fun right? The college age mindset, too, is one of disregard and invincibility when it comes to this issue. This is unfortunate because in reality a DWI can cost thousands on thousands of dollars and mar your criminal record for life; not to mention there’s always the looming possibility of jail. That’s right; the same jail where the thieves and drug dealers, and even worse, reside. Somehow this realization seems to slip the minds of many everyday people as this crime goes on being committed with alarming regularity. So let’s start this off with a disclaimer: If you drive while intoxicated you can kill yourself or others. That’s why it’s illegal. So don’t do it.

With that said, here are some things to keep in mind if you’re being pulled over for a suspected DWI.

- When pulling over, make sure that you put your blinker on, slow down, and find a safe spot alongside the road to stop your car. Parking lots are generally a good option. Stopping with half your car still in the middle of the road may make your judgment seem suspect as well as perturb the officer, who then has to avoid traffic just to walk from his car to yours.

- Once stopped, get your license and registration out immediately. Turn off any music you’re listening to. Turn off your car’s engine. Roll down your window completely. If it’s nighttime, turn off your headlights and turn on your interior light.

- If you believe that there is any chance that you will slur, or that your nervousness in the situation will cause you to speak without normal fluidity, don’t talk. You have no obligation to answer any questions that the police officer asks you. If he asks you how much you’ve had to drink tonight, simply decline to answer. Silence is your right under the Fifth Amendment and cannot be held against you in court.

- Stay in your car unless the officer asks you to step out. If you step out of your car before you are asked to do so, the officer pulling you over may assume that you’re armed, or that you’re in a cloudy mental state. Either way you’re probably going to get frisked immediately thereafter and this behavior can be stated as erratic in court.

- You are not required by law to take field sobriety tests in most states. If an officer asks you to walk a straight line, for example, you are allowed to decline and this declination also falls under your Fifth Amendment rights and cannot be held against you in court. If you feel that there is any chance that you could fail any field sobriety test, and keep in mind that some are unusually difficult (such as reciting the alphabet backwards), then don’t take any.

- Finally, if the officer asks you to take a breathalyzer test, tell him that you do not refuse the test but that you would like to speak to counsel before taking the test. Unlike the refusal to comply with interrogation or field sobriety tests, refusal to take a breathalyzer test can be held against you in court, leading to harsher penalties. By asking for an attorney, you effectively increase the duration of time before you have to take the breathalyzer, without putting yourself in a bad position by refusing the test. Unless you just polished off a 5th of vodka right before you were pulled over, your blood alcohol content will be lower if you take the test later. This will work in your favor, as the severity of DUI offenses is determined in part by the offender’s blood alcohol content.

These are the things to do and not to do if you’re pulled over after you’ve been drinking. Remember though, the best way to avoid the hardships that come along with a DWI conviction is to not drink and drive at all.

Jason Ladock

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