If the police have charged you with driving under the influence (DUI), it is important to take a broad approach to your defense. You need to examine all possible options, including looking at things that might seem insignificant to you.
One of those might be why the police stopped you. “What does it matter?” you might say. “Their breathalyzer was reading wrong, as I hardly drank anything, so surely that should be the focus of my defense?”
The police cannot stop you without a good reason
The police can only stop a driver outside of a DUI checkpoint if they have “reasonable suspicion” that the person has broken the law. Basically, they need to have a fairly good reason to believe the driver has broken the law based on some sort of evidence.
It could be for a non-driving-related reason. For example, if your vehicle matches the description of a getaway car used in a recent robbery or because they believe they saw you holding a gun to your passenger’s head.
Alternatively, it could be because your vehicle infringes traffic laws – such as if you are not showing a license plate or your turn signal is not functioning. Or because of how they see you driving, such as if you failed to stop at a red light, were speeding or were weaving across the lanes which could suggest you are drunk.
If the reason the police offer gives the court for the stop is not strong enough or is blatantly false, the court may deem the stop invalid along with the subsequent arrest. In other words, if you can show the police did not have reasonable suspicion to stop you, then you may have no case left to answer.
DUI defenses can sometimes seem surprising to the uninitiated, which is why getting experienced legal guidance to examine all options is wise.
