Georgia One Leg Stand Test
Police officers in the Atlanta area use a battery of standardized field sobriety tests to determine whether or not a driver should be arrested for driving under the influence. These NHTSA-approved tests include the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus, the walk-and-turn test, and the one-leg stand test.
The one-leg stand test is designed to do much more than measure your physical performance – known as a “divided attention” test, it is used to assess your ability to pay attention and to follow the police officer’s directions. When an individual is under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs, it becomes harder to perform mental and physical tasks at the same time.
To administer the one-leg stand test, the officer will ask you to stand with one foot approximately six inches off of the ground. As you stand with one leg in the air, you must count out loud (in thousands) until instructed to return your foot to the ground. During this test you must also look down while keeping your arms at your side and pointing your toe out. The test lasts for 30 seconds.
During the test, the police officer is looking for four things. These include: putting your foot down during the test, swaying while trying to balance, hopping to maintain balance, and using your arms to balance. If the officer sees you exhibit two out of the four criteria, you may be arrested for drunk driving.
If you have been arrested after failing the one-leg stand test in Atlanta, there’s still hope. There are documented shortcomings with field sobriety tests. One issue is that physical condition or impairment -- unrelated to sobriety -- may affect performance. Even something as simple as nervousness and stress may affect a person’s ability to maintain balance during this test.
This test is also subjective, meaning that it is up to the police officer to determine whether or not you fail. Since the officer already assumes that you are impaired when pulling you over, he or she may be looking for any reason at all to say you meet arrest criteria. Connect with Atlanta DUI defense attorney Frank Gomez to help you with your case, please contact him today.
