[trvrsalom]

That makes sense, but is there a way to quantify that? I've always had the notion that something like a roadside sobriety test is rather subjective. I know that if I were in the situation of being suspected of a DUI (which I hope I never am), I would want a clear, quantifiable test, with a low margin of error.

[ssharp]

You can refuse to submit to the test, get arrested, and then do breathalyzer at the station. Police also have a portable breathalyzer you could submit to roadside.

I have an eye condition that makes the gaze test, in my opinion, unreliable and the two times I've been pulled over after drinking, the police noted this prior to my doing the test. In both instances I did fine in the one-leg test and the walk-a-line test (at least I assume I did fine). To avoid inconvenience, I did decide to allow the portable breathalyzer one of those times and I think the reading came up 0.0015. I knew I wasn't seriously impaired or over the legal limit and had only had 2 or 3 beers over a 3 or 4 hour period. If you're not sure if you're over the legal limit or not, I wouldn't submit to the roadside breathalyzer (obviously though you shouldn't be driving if you're not sure or think you're impaired).

[logfromblammo]

Disclaimer: I am not a lawyer. This is Internet-tough-guy advice, and you probably shouldn't follow it. It serves mainly as a thought experiment for people who generally don't get pulled over by cops.

Don't refuse the test. Refuse to submit to searches, seizures, or interrogations without the assistance of legal counsel instead. Then sit down and shut up. You will be arrested, and taken to the cop shop, but you will be more likely to prevail in court after you get your administrative punishment at the police station.

There are no objective standards for passing a field sobriety test. They exist solely to give officers plausible justification for whatever they decide to do next. If they give you one, they probably haven't yet decided whether to arrest you. In that case, if you do well enough, you will probably be free to go. If they have already decided to arrest you, you could juggle flaming chainsaws on a unicycle and still fail the test.

Once the cops even hint that they may be building a DUI case against you, stop helping them do it!

[vesrah]

Be careful. Depending on where you live, refusing the breathalyzer or roadside test results in a mandatory 1 year license suspension regardless of what comes up in the test at the police station. Arizona here.

[to3m]

Interesting! Can you at least opt to go straight for the breathalyzer?

If you've not been drinking, it seems a bit of a waste of time to have to stand on one leg (etc.), when you could just use the breathalyzer and have the question answered straight away.

[ssharp]

It's dependent on the officer. In Ohio, you can be charged with a DUI automatically if you refuse the breathalyzer. I'm not certain if this extends to the roadside test. My original comment was more that you might be able to refuse the roadside test, get arrested, and then agree to take the breathalyzer at the police station so you'd have stronger evidence.

The roadside tests are only accurate to a certain degree, whereas a properly calibrated breathalyzer provides much stronger evidence.