Are DUI field sobriety tests accurate and reliable?
There is a debate about the extent to which field sobriety tests are accurate and reliable. According to the federal studies, the horizontal gaze Nystagmus test where you follow stimulus with your eyes is considered to be 77% accurate. The walk and turn test where you walk nine steps in each direction is considered to be 68% accurate, and the one leg stand test which is where you lift a foot off the ground for 30 seconds is considered to be 65% accurate. The upshot of that is that even if you believe these statistics, if somebody were to be arrested and prosecuted on the basis of these tests, then 20 to 30% of them would be wrongfully arrested and prosecuted. What we do know is there are many factors other than alcohol that can cause somebody to perform poorly on the field sobriety tests. Among those factors would be physical impairment, injuries, being overweight, being elderly, wearing high-heeled shoes, wearing uncomfortable shoes, being nervous, being intimidated, being distracted by traffic that is whizzing by, weather conditions, if it is particularly hot, particularly cold, rainy. Also, if they are asked to do these tests on an uneven surface, any of these factors which are not alcohol related can cause somebody to perform poorly.
