From Clarksville to Murfreesboro, from Franklin to Goodlettsville, we found sober drivers charged with DUI, and because of a backlog in alcohol and toxicology tests at the TBI, they are forced to wait months for proof of their innocence.
because of a backlog in alcohol and toxicology tests at the TBI, they are forced to wait months for proof of their innocence.
Christ. In a country where even a charge can set you back in terms of your job and other things that might require a background check, maybe, just maybe, they shouldn’t be charged until the tests come back positive?
“(The officer) said, ‘I’d like to do a field sobriety test, do you consent? And I said yes, I do consent, but I’d rather do a breathalyzer. And he said, we don’t do breathalyzer in Rutherford County. We do the blood alcohol test at the station based on your behavior.’”
Never consent to a field sobriety test or anything. Never talk to the cops.
Here in Australia, there aren’t any bullshit field sobriety tests - the breathalyzer just comes out and you get tested. If you blow over, you then wait 15 minutes if you produce a lower reading, before trying again. If you still blow over, you then go to the station to get a proper test done before the police can legally prove anything.
There are obviously freedom-based downsides to mandatory roadside testing, but if the alternative is the kind of shit in this story, then I’m happy with our system here. Never had an issue with it myself… unless we’re talking roadside drug testing, which is flawed as fuck, and most of the time produces a positive result the day after, leading to a loss of license. We literally have ‘road safety’ billboards along our highways plastered with the tagline “get caught long after the high is gone.”
Australia is so fucking behind the times in so many ways, it drives me insane.
Christ. In a country where even a charge can set you back in terms of your job and other things that might require a background check, maybe, just maybe, they shouldn’t be charged until the tests come back positive?
Never consent to a field sobriety test or anything. Never talk to the cops.
Here in Australia, there aren’t any bullshit field sobriety tests - the breathalyzer just comes out and you get tested. If you blow over, you then wait 15 minutes if you produce a lower reading, before trying again. If you still blow over, you then go to the station to get a proper test done before the police can legally prove anything.
There are obviously freedom-based downsides to mandatory roadside testing, but if the alternative is the kind of shit in this story, then I’m happy with our system here. Never had an issue with it myself… unless we’re talking roadside drug testing, which is flawed as fuck, and most of the time produces a positive result the day after, leading to a loss of license. We literally have ‘road safety’ billboards along our highways plastered with the tagline “get caught long after the high is gone.”
Australia is so fucking behind the times in so many ways, it drives me insane.
I believe us yanks are allowed to waive field sobriety tests and request a breathalizer instead.