What Will Occur Following Your Performance on the Field Sobriety Tests?

Interviewer: What happens immediately after the field sobriety tests? Is the person usually arrested right after that?

Brian Sloan: Usually, it’s the cherry on top. The portable breath test is usually given at the end, after all the field sobriety tests are done. I imagine this is so the officer can say, “Well, the results proves impairment,” at least to the officer.

They can justify a failure on the field tests because this wasn’t just a balance issue, this wasn’t just someone with allergies but this does have to do with alcohol.

I think the reason is if they gave the portable breath test device at the beginning of the investigation, the person would find out the number or find out that they tested positive and, at that point, they would probably stop cooperating.

The officer wants the driver to perform the tests under the premise, “Show me that you’re not drunk. Show me that you’re fine to drive. Okay. Now that I’ve gotten all this evidence against you as to how you did on these field sobriety tests, now is to this cherry on top. Now let’s see what your blood alcohol content is. Okay. Now you’re under arrest.”

Interviewer: Will you see the readout on the preliminary breath test? Do they put that in the police report or they just put positive or not positive?

Brian Sloan: They do put the result in the police reports. They will put it in the admin per se implied consent, which is what they fill out to suspend someone’s license, under suspicion of DUI.

The Results of the Portable Breath Test Are Not Always Accurate

There’s no proof, though. The officer can write in there that the portable breath test showed a 0.123 blood-alcohol content, but there’s no picture taken, there’s nothing recorded on the device. The officer can basically make it up if he wanted to.

What I’ve been seeing more frequently, especially in the last couple of months, is how different the supposed portable breath test device result was from the actual blood test results. It used to be for years, that they were pretty close. Lately, they have been way off, both in being way too low and in being way too high or at least being way different from what the blood test results come back as.

Interviewer: Does that help you defend a person, to show that the device was not functioning properly?

Brian Sloan: It’s usually not a safe area to even try to bring in the portable breath test results. I swear I came across a case but I’ve been looking for it for years. I cannot seem to find it again. It said that defense counsel is allowed bring up a portable breath test result to show a difference between the actual blood test results and the portable breath test results.

The reason why the portable breath tests are not considered reliable is they do not go through the same monthly and quarterly testing procedures, to ensure its accuracy as a blood test or as an Intoxilyzer breath-testing device. Even if as defense counsel, I wanted to bring in the portable breath test, all the prosecutor has to comment on is that these are not considered reliable.

They do not go through the testing. It is just an estimate. It’s really only helpful for the officer to determine whether there was alcohol in his system or not.

By Brian Douglas Sloan

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Why Attorney Brian Douglas Sloan?

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“I am one of only a handful of Phoenix DUI Lawyers that focuses solely on DUI Defense representation.”

I have spent my entire career focused on DUI Defense representation, having personally defended more than 4,100+ DUI clients in the past 18+ years.

If you’re looking for a divorce attorney, tax attorney, or civil attorney, then I can comfortably say: "I’m not the one for you".

Coming up with traditional, as well as outside-the-box motions and defenses for my clients, often with good results, is the hallmark of my practice.

Lawyers that say they are "aggressive", or "will fight for you", are a dime a dozen. They use these phrases because that is what they think people want to hear. The truth of the matter is, being "aggressive" rarely gets the client anywhere in these court systems. Being "aggressive" isn’t the same as being good, and is often used to put on a show for a client to hide the fact that they aren’t doing anything meaningful for the client.

The same is true for the lawyers that claim to do DUI Defense... and Criminal Cases..., and Accident cases..., and Divorces. A Jack-of-all-Trades is a master of none. By handling all different sorts of cases, they take away from their ability to truly focus on DUIs, and keep up to date on the latest changes in DUI Defense Representation.

What I offer is intelligent, quality DUI Defense, at an exceptional price.

I am one of only a handful of Arizona DUI Lawyers that focuses solely on DUI Defense representation.

I have not only taught other lawyers how to do DUI Defense Representation at statewide seminars, but I produce DUI Legal Guides used by defense lawyers across Arizona.

I am one of the most award-winning DUI Defense Lawyers in Arizona; have been recognized nationally, including in a 2022 issue of USA Today; and there are only a few lawyers in Arizona who have personally defended more DUI cases than I have. I am also one of the most reasonably-priced DUI Lawyers, as I pride myself on charging a Flat Rate only for the legal services you need, and not for the legal services you don’t.

I am also the lawyer who people call once they realize that their original lawyer screwed something up, gave them false hope or false promises, or simply just took their money and didn’t do much on the case. You would be surprised at how often this happens.

Save yourself the trouble of hiring the wrong lawyer, and hire the right DUI Defense Lawyer from the start.

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