Every arrest has what is called a "police/citizen encounter." DUI's are no exception. There are three different types of police citizen encounters. There is a "consensual" encounter, a temporary detention supported by reasonable suspicion and a full blown arrest supported by probable cause. An individuals rights vary based on the type of encounter that occurs. Excluding checkpoints, that is an issue all to itself, a police officer can make a traffic stop for any of the following, probable cause for a traffic infraction, probable cause of criminal activity or reasonable suspicion of criminal activity. What this means, within the context of a DUI, is that by the time that the officer turns on the lights, the officer must believe that he is going to either write a ticket or make an arrest. The interesting thing about DUI cases is that people are intimidated into giving the police evidence that they are not legally entitled to. Once an individual is stopped by the police, that person is not required to talk to the police. "How much did you have to drink?" "Three or four." That person just gave the officer evidence which he was under no legal obligation to provide. The amount of evidence simply given away is astounding. The police would have no other method of getting this evidence if it was not freely given away. Under Florida Law, a driver is required to produce his or her driver's license, registration & proof of insurance when stopped by police. A driver is under no obligation to make any statements to the police officer. Simply following the officer's lawful commands is sufficient. Getting out of the car when told, providing the appropriate documents when requested are essentially all that is required. Some of the worst evidence that a person can give away is the roadside sobriety exercises. There is no legal obligation to perform those exercises. The exercises are designed to fail. The proof of this is quite simple. The officer administering the exercises took a 3 day course in order to be able to administer the tests. A considerable portion for this course is learning how to do the exercises correctly. This is done in a classroom setting. You could be expected to get it right the very first time at two in the morning on the side of a road with traffic speeding past you wearing high heels in the rain. The officer gets three days inside of a controlled environment and you get one opportunity to get it right in real world conditions. When asked to perform these exercises, a simple and polite "no thanks " is all that is required. The main points to remember are, that an individual is not required to make any statements to the officer. The second, but equally important fact, is that there is no requirement under Florida law requiring someone being investigated for DUI to perform any roadside exercises. This can be a classic example of "less is more." The less somebody says and the less a person does the more their attorney will have to work with. The Law Offices of Michael A. Dye, P.A is a criminal defense law firm located in Fort Lauderdale, Broward County, Florida. Mr. Dye represents individuals accused of DUI, Drug Charges and other serious criminal offenses. For more information, please call (954)745-8548 or visit www.AlcoholAndDrugLaw.com.