Field sobriety tests are tests conducted "in the field" after police stop a person whom they suspect of driving while under the influence.
Typical field tests include:
standing on one foot,
walking a straight line and turning around to walk back (walking heel-to-toe),
touching a finger to your nose,
penlight test - horizontal gaze nystagmus or vertical gaze nystagmus,
alphabet test, and
counting.
Other similar tests created by police over the years might also be used to "assumedly" test for sobriety.
right to refuse sobriety test
Do you have a right to refuse to submit to a field sobriety test?
Absolutely, however, if you are a resident of Wisconsin and you refuse to submit to a field sobriety test, the refusal itself establishes probable cause for an arrest for an OWI (operating while impaired).
wisconsin implied consent laws
You do not however have a right to refuse to submit to a blood test to determine the percentage of alcohol or other intoxicants (legal and illegal drugs) in your bloodstream after arrest.
Under Wisconsin laws, you give your implied consent to be tested for drunkeness (sobriety), and you must submit to a test of your breath or blood after you have been arrested.
probable cause for arrest
Field sobriety tests are conducted by police to establish probable cause for their subsequent actions (arrest or search). The failure of field sobriety tests provides police with probable cause to make a search or arrest.
sobriety test attorneys
The attorneys listed below defend people who have been accused of refusing to submit to a field sobriety test, blood test or breath test.
