In a recent Ohio case, Green v. Throckmorton, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that a jury can decide whether the police officer had enough evidence to administer field sobriety tests and arrest the driver for DUI.
In the Green case, the driver was pulled over for failing to dim her high beam lights as she drove past oncoming traffic. The police officer approached the driver and noticed that her pupils were unusually “constricted.” The driver insisted she had nothing to drink, but the police officer ordered her out of the car and forced her to take field sobriety tests. The driver passed many but not all of the tests. A search of the car revealed no evidence of drug or alcohol use.
The driver was taken to jail and forced to provide a urine sample. She spent over two days in jail before she could post bond. When her urine test eventually came back negative all criminal charges were dismissed.
The driver then filed a civil rights lawsuit claiming that the police did not have enough evidence to order her to take the field sobriety tests or to arrest her for DUI. The trial court initially ruled in favor of the police officers. But, the Appellate Court reversed, holding it was up to the jury, not the judge, to determine whether the police had enough evidence to arrest the driver under these circumstances.
If you believe your civil rights were violated, contact one of the experienced civil rights trial attorneys at Jackowiak Law Offices right away.