Last week, Fort Lauderdale DUI Lawyer William Moore discussed the Broward County Sheriff’s Office weekend crackdown on drunk driving. Mothers Against Drunk Drivers members road along with Sheriff’s deputies to show their support for the heightened weekend patrols. Last Friday and Saturday nights, the Sheriff deployed additional deputies to patrol the Broward County area for drivers who appeared to be under the influence of alcohol or other substances, and whose driving was impaired as a result. Broward DUI defense attorney William Moore Criminal Defense says that the extra patrol cars on the streets were notable in part because of the Sheriff’s new plan to draw blood samples from certain drivers.
In most cases, a law enforcement officer who suspects that a driver is under the influence of a substance will administer roadside field sobriety tests to determine if the driver’s faculties are impaired, administer a breath alcohol test, or in many cases, both. Because some DUI suspects refuse to submit to breath tests, the Broward County Sheriff’s Office decided to implement a new program to combat that problem. If a DUI suspect refused to give a breath sample, the office said it would have deputies call in to an on-call judge to get a search warrant for a mandatory blood test. If the judge approved the search warrant, the suspect’s blood was to be drawn by medical personnel at a mobile blood drawing facility in near Broward.
There were some problems with this plan, both legal and practical, according to Fort Lauderdale DUI Lawyer William Moore. One of the biggest issues was suspect compliance. It seems that deputies did not adequately plan for the scenario in which Fort Lauderdale DUI suspects also refused to comply with a blood test, even if court ordered. One 45-year-old suspect vehemently opposed the blood draw, loudly announcing, “You are going to have to beat me. Take me to jail. You are not taking my blood.”
Surprisingly, deputies did just that. Although they secured, in cooperation with the Broward County State Attorney’s Office, search warrants to draw blood from the four suspects who refused to submit to breath alcohol tests on Friday night, the medical personnel on duty drew blood from none of them. Despite the publicity and the hype of the new, supposedly more effective plan to catch drunk drivers, the Sheriff’s Office did not live up to its claims. All told, the office made 26 DUI arrests on Friday night and planned to continue seeking search warrants for blood samples on Saturday night.
Fort Lauderdale DUI attorney William Moore provides comprehensive DUI defense in south Florida. If you have been charged with a DUI, contact William Moore Criminal Defense, P.A., a Fort Lauderdale DUI lawyer with offices in Fort Lauderdale-Dade, Broward, and Fort Lauderdale Counties.
This article should be used for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice nor as implied representation of any person.