People v. Day, 2016 IL App (3d) 150852 (January). Episode 294 (Duration 10:56)

Field Sobriety Tests Administered On Wet Surface Were Invalid Creating Probable Cause Problems In This DUI Arrest.

Field Sobriety Tests…

This Statutory summary suspension is rescinded after improper SFSTs fail to establish probable cause for DUI arrest.

Facts

The officer in this DUI arrest administered the field sobriety tests in an improper fashion by requesting the defendant perform them on a wet surface while it was raining.

This improper administration alone significantly impairs the probative weight that can be given to those tests.

Illinois DUI Resource Page

Check out the Illinois DUI Resource Page

to learn more about DUI in Illinois.

He Passed The SFSTs

Even further, despite the weather conditions, the defendant’s performance on the tests was reasonable, standing on one foot for 30 seconds without using his arms for balance and walking a straight line for 18 steps without stepping off the line.

Trial Judge Ruling

Those results would not lead a reasonably cautious person to believe that the defendant was impaired by alcohol.

Issue

The ultimate question is whether the arrest was supported by probable cause.

This cases addresses head on exactly what weight should be given to SFSTs when the NHTSA standards are not exactly followed.

Probable Cause

Probable cause to arrest exists when the facts known to the officer at the time of the arrest are sufficient to lead a reasonably cautious person to believe that the arrestee has committed a crime. Such a determination must be based upon the totality of the circumstances.

Probable cause must rise to a level higher than mere suspicion.

It must also rise to a level higher than “reasonable, articulable suspicion,” the lesser standard required to justify an investigatory stop, rather than a full arrest.

The State Pointed To…

The State lists a number of factors that, it argues, would reasonably have led the officer to believe that the defendant was driving while under the influence of alcohol.

Specifically, the State relies heavily on the fact that the defendant “failed to perform both field sobriety tests as instructed.”

The State also points out that the defendant admitted to drinking, “had the strong odor of alcohol on his breath,” had bloodshot eyes, and slurred his speech.

Analysis

Upon closer examination, however, the State’s purported laundry list of factors breaks down.

Here the officer testified—explicitly and repeatedly—that he did not administer those tests (one-leg stand and walk-and-turn) properly.

He admitted that it was improper to administer those tests on wet pavement and improper to administer them while it was raining.

He admitted that the field sobriety tests should not be administered in even a drizzle.

He even agreed that the improper administration of those tests rendered them “invalid.”

Officer Had Credibility Issues

Notably, the officer initially could not remember the weather on the night in question.

After checking his report, however, the officer agreed that it was raining. Still later, the officer apparently had an independent recollection that it was only drizzling.

The defendant testified that the roadway was wet and slick.

While the officer testified that the defendant briefly lost his balance in walking from his vehicle, the defendant denied this accusation.

The trial court was within its right to settle credibility issues in favor of the defendant.

Clearly,