Can police officers search my person or my personal belongings if I am stopped for a DUI?

Can police officers search my person or my personal belongings if I am stopped for a DUI?

Neil Shouse (Defense Attorney) gives expert video advice on: Can a police officer visually inspect the inside of my car if I am stopped for a DUI?; Can police officers search my vehicle if I am stopped for a DUI?; Can police officers search my glove box and trunk if I am stopped for DUI? and more...

If you are stopped for DUI, the officers can order you out of the vehicle and can pat down the exterior lining of your clothes. That's what they call a pat down search. The purpose of a pat down search is to feel whether there are any weapons or sharp objects that you may have that you could use to threaten the officer's safety. It is not intended to be a search for evidence. However, if in the course of doing the pat down search the officers felt a gun or knife or it was obviously drugs, at that point they could reach in and seize the weapon or illegal item. Other than that, the officers cannot do a full search of your person and your clothes unless you are ultimately arrested for DUI after the roadside investigation.