Atlanta DUI Blog

Is that Georgia DUI Roadblock Legal?

2010-08-30T11:20:00.001-07:00

According to many constitutional proponents, The only legitimate validation with regard to a police roadblock should be to alert drivers of an unsafe event in the immediate vicinity. Even so, police utilize roadblocks or sobriety checkpoints as a means to stop vehicles and question motorists, which you should not assume is legal.

Why don't we take a look at just what makes a Georgia DUI roadblock lawful

All vehicles must stopped, as opposed to random stops

The delay to drivers must be kept to a minimum

The roadblock need to be well-identified as a police checkpoint

The screening officer's training and experience needs to be sufficient to qualify him to make an initial determination as to which motorists ought to be given field sobriety tests for DUI

The roadblock needs to be executed pursuant to a plan devised by supervisory personnel and not by officers in the field utilizing their unfettered discretion, and,

The supervisory officers have to have a legitimate primary objective for the roadblock other general crime deterrance. See generally, Thomas v. State, 277 Ga. App. 88; 625 S.E.2d 455 (2005). These factors are not general guidelines, but are minimum constitutional prerequisites.

How Atlanta Uses DUI Roadblocks

A recent news story underlines the need for an Atlanta DUI lawyer well-versed in Georgia DUI law and keeping a ear on local politics. At a local community forum in July, Atlanta Police Chief George Turner admitted to using unconstitutional roadblocks for general crime deterrence.

The Atlanta Police Chief's dialogue went as follows:

"When you look at where we place roadblocks, and the crime patterns in our community, you'll see roadblocks in that area," Turner said.

Atlanta Police Chief Turner: "So it's a strategy, one of the many strategies that we use to fight crime in the community.

Community Forum Participant: "To fight crime in general, including robberies, thefts ?"

Atlanta Police Chief Turner: "Robberies, yes, to fight crime throughout the entire community."

Community Forum Participant: "Would that include drugs as well?"

Atlanta Police Chief Turner: "Sure."

This conversation exposed that every single Atlanta DUI roadblock executed under Atlanta Police Chief Turner's tenure could be construed as being utilized for general crime deterrence. If this is so, it means that that each and every single roadblock was illegal and each and every Atlanta DUI arrest made at these roadblocks could be tossed out of court at a motion to suppress under the 4th Amendment as an illegal search and seizure. If you've been arrested at an Atlanta DUI roadblock, don't think that you need to plea. Be sure to hire an experienced Georgia DUI attorney and have your Atlanta DUI case dismissed.

Should You Trust Georgia's Intoxilyzer 5000 in a Georgia DUI Arrest?

2010-07-07T12:27:00.001-07:00

The recent article from Washington D.C. regarding around 400 wrongful DUI convictions as well as 200 wrongful incarcerations based on a mis-calibrated DUI breath test machine is yet an additional reminder of the unreliability of DUI breath testing to estimate blood alcohol levels. Blood tests are a much more accurate method to calculate blood alcohol content, however several states, such as Georgia, use this unreliable breath machine.

Georgia uses the particular device - The Intoxilyzer 5000 , made in Kentucky by CMI, Inc.The "5000" machine is in fact an older variation of their latest machine. The more recent machine is calibrated before each individual test in comparison to the machine that Georgia uses, which is calibrated once a quarter, or every three months. In Florida, where the Intoxilyzer 8000 is used, it averages 80 failures a month and consequently the more error prone Intoxilyzer 5000 is no longer considered scientifically reliable in Florida. This means that in Georgia there are an average of 240 incorrect breath tests between calibrations for each and every machine in the state, which there are thousands.

A Few Disappointing Facts about the GA DUI Machine

In order to calculate a blood alcohol content on your breath, the machine assumes your breath is going to be 34 degrees celcius. Guess What? Your breath varies plus or minus a degree which can throw the results off by 7%.. Having a fever can throw the machine off.

The machine used for Georgia DUI breath tests also makes similar assumption regarding your breath to blood ratio. It assumes you have a 2100:1 breath to blood ratio, even though people actually vary between 1300:1 - 3100:1. You guessed right - if you have lower ratio, say 1500:1, you're going to blow an "impaired" .10 BAC even though your actual blood alcohol content is a legal .07!

Your body process alcohol unevenly when you first start drinking. If you've had your first drink within the previous hour, alcohol content in your arteries is much higher than your veins - if you blow during this time frame - guess what? You'll blow higher than your actual BAC. Reports have it that holding your breath for 30 seconds will yield a higher reading, and hyperventilating will produce a lower reading. So, your rate of breathing and breathing pattern also affects the test.

The Georgia DUI breath test machine also assumes a certain concentration of red blood cells in the blood known as hematocrit as 47%. Hematocrit can vary from 42% to 52%. A person with hematocrit under 47% will register a higher breath alcohol level.

There are a number of known household substances that the Georgia DUI breath machines mistakes for alcohol. They say it has filters, but no one is allowed to test it, so sadly, no one really knows if it does or not.

These are just a few of the reasons not to trust the Georgia DUI Breath test! If you're going up against the machine for a Georgia DUI charge, be sure to hire an experienced DUI Lawyer.

Arresting the Innocent and Assassinating Political Enemies

2010-07-06T18:25:00.001-07:00

DUI Field Sobriety Tests pass the test. Gwinnett Commission Chairman fails DUI field sobriety tests for and blows 0.000. Law Enforcement can not believe they are wrong so they requested a blood test and went back to the restaurant to seize the receipt. Read the AJC Article

Gwinnett DUI of County Commission Chairman blood test comes back 0.00 revealing no alcohol in his system and raising serious questions about DUI detection and standardized field sobriety evaluation techniques. Gwinnett County Sheriff offers personal apology to Commission Chairman Bannister in his Gwinnett DUI arrest. Read the negative blood test article

Top Georgia DUI Myths

2010-07-02T10:11:00.000-07:00

Top DUI Myths from an Atlanta DUI Lawyer

The Facts about Georgia DUI's from a Top Atlanta DUI Attorney

The best advice you can get is to make sure you don't place yourself in a position to be charged with an Atlanta DUI or Georgia DUI case. Here's some top myths relating to DUI Georgia:

Myth: Driving at a BAC of .08 is impaired or dangerous.
Fact: A University of Utah study found that drivers talking on cell phones with and without earbuds were more dangerous than drivers who had consumed enough alcohol to be in excess of the 0.08 legal blood alcohol limit for most states. See blog link Strayer, D. Human Factors, Summer 2006; vol 48: pp 381-391. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety: "DUI/DWI Laws." News release, University of Utah.

Myth: Breath Spray will help you beat the DUI breath test.
Fact: Breath spray will only increase the reading of the machine, which is not what you want.

Myth: Sucking on a penny will help fool a Georgia DUI machine.
Fact: Nope: Pennies can't fool a breathlyzer.

Myth: "Alcohol on the breath" is a reliable sign of alcohol consumption and intoxication.
Fact: Alcohol does not have an odor. The smell of "alcohol on the breath" is actually the odor of the things in or ingredients of the alcoholic beverages. Non-alcoholic beers will produce the same smell the as drinking a regular alcoholic beer. Georgia law even recognizes that the mere odor of alcohol is not enough to convict someone of an Atlanta DUI or Georgia DUI.

Myth: A Breath test will clear diabetics who exhibit characteristics of alcohol impairment like slurred speech, confusion, stumbling, sleepiness, uncoordinated behavior and red face cause them to fail field sobriety tests.
Fact: Diabetics often have acetone in their breath, which DUI breath machines may confuse with alcohol in the blood stream.

Myth: Field sobriety evaluations are validated by the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration, and accurately identify drunk drivers.
Fact: The three standardized test the HGN(eye jerking test), Walk and Turn and One Leg Stand are 77%, 65% AND 68% when performed under ideal conditions (with those under 65 years of age), with no back, leg, knee, ankle or inner ear conditions on a flat, level, dry, debris free surface in heels less than two inches. These conditions are rarely met especially in questionable weather, at night, or with strobe lights flashing in the background.Further, Police Officers rarely perform these test as they are trained. The end result is that tests can be looked as stupid human tricks rather than accurate tests of sobriety.

Myth: DUI breathlyzer machine are validated as accurate and cannot be challenged in court.
Fact: There are many sources of error in breath tests. Mouth wash, mouth alcohol, acetone, radio frequency interference, certain solvents and chemicals, asthma inhalers which contain albuterol suspended in ethanol or alcohol vapor. Even in the absence of any of these common problems and under ideal conditions, alcohol breath testers simply lack precision. The Georgia Intox. 5000 breath testing manual states that breath testing has inherent sample variability of 0.01 for one sample and 0.02 for two samples. This means that under ideal conditions, which is a highly unlikely situation, a breath alcohol reading of .08 reflects an actual blood alcohol reading of anywhere from .06 to .1. That is a margin of error of 25 percent of the legal limit. At the under 21 level of .02 the error rating is 100%!

Myth: A person accused of DUI by breath test is presumed innocent. The presumption of innocence guaranteed by the both the U.S. and Georgia Constitutions.
Fact: Although the presumption of innocence may be guaranteed by and the constitution, it is denied in fact by a state of Georgia adminstered breath test. The state administered breath test is presumed to be accurate and you have the responsibility to prove it doesn't work by hiring an expert to testisfy to the known shortcomings of the machine, or having an extremely effective cross examination by an experienced DUI lawyer using the Officer's own training materials.

Myth: Law enforcement officers cannot influence the BAC reading of a Georgia DUI breath-testing machine.
Fact: Law enforcement officers asolutely can, and do, influence BAC readings. The first part of lung air, after discarding the dead space, has an alcohol concentration much lower than the equivalent Blood Alcohol Content. Whereas, the last part of lung air has an alcohol concentration that is much higher than the equivalent Blood Alcohol Content.The last part of the breath can be over 50% above the alcohol level. Thus, a breath test reading of 0.12% taken from the last part of the breath may indicate that the blood level is only 0.07%."

Myth: DUI Alcohol breath machines measure the concentration of alcohol in a person's blood stream (blood alcohol concentration or BAC).
Fact: No. DUI breath machines don't measure blood alcohol content. BAC can only be achieved with a blood test. In an attempt to measure alcohol in the blood stream, they measure alcohol on the breath and suppose from that measurement a BAC.As result, some states do not permit breath tests as admissable in court. Alcohol breath machines detect any chemical compounds that contain the methyl group in its molecular structure. Thousands of such compounds exist, such as gasoline, acetone, glue, asthma inhalers, cleaning fluids, paint, paint remover, celluloid, even "new car smell".

Breath Machines also assume as constants certain ratios within the human body that actually vary widely from person to person and within the same person over time. For example, many breath-testing machines assume a 2,100-to-1 ratio in converting alcohol in the breath to estimates of alcohol in the blood. However, this ratio varies from 1,900 to 2,400 among people and also within a person over time. Some breath analysis machines assume a hematocrit (blood cells as a percent of blood volume) of 47%. By comparison, Lance Armstrong may have a hemocrit level of 47-49%, but anything over 50% is considering blood doping and would result in a two year ban from professional cycling llike the Tour de France or Tour de Georgia. However, hematocrit values range from 42 to 49% in men and from 37 to 47% in women. These machines appear to discriminate against female suspects.

These machines assume a body mass of an average male and do not account for individuals with higher body fat. The machines assume an average body temperature. Can you say junk science?

If you're arrested and charged with an Atlanta DUI or Georgia DUI, be sure to contact a experienced Atlanta DUI or Georgia DUI Attorney. To intelligently, evaluate your case, a competent Georgia DUI lawyerwill need evaluate the police reports, incident reports, video tapes, and 911 dispatch tapes, and at least attempt to speak with the police involved who are not required to talk prior to taking the witness stand.

Hiring a qualified Georgia DUI lawyer is crucial!

What Makes a Winnable Atlanta DUI Case?

2010-07-02T10:09:00.001-07:00

Do I Have a Case for my DUI?

A Top Atlanta "Drunk Driving" Attorney Remarks on Possible Defenses Against an Atlanta DUI Case.

Just about every Atlanta DUI case has potential defenses. Having said that, you have to examine extensively to decide if you have a credible defense. A seasoned DUI Practice specializes in studying the details of the case and determining if you infact have a case versus your "drunk driving" charge. This generally means defending your case at least to a motion hearing on the suppression of illegally obtained evidence. The State is not required to give you all of their evidence until 10 days prior to trial, which usually means the motion hearing. Moreover, in certain cases, the police will not speak with you until you get them in court for a motion hearing. Acknowledge that a good number DUI Atlanta law enforcement work the graveyard shift and are asleep during the day.

In order to intelligently evaluate your case, a competent Atlanta "drunk driving" attorney will need evaluate the police reports, incident reports, video tapes, and 911 dispatch tapes, and at least attempt to speak with the police involved .

This means that hiring a qualified Atlanta DUI attorney is crucial!

Following are some examples of issues that we have used in the past to successfully resolve Atlanta cases. For a complete list, go to: DUI Atlanta: Do I Have a Case?

NON-STANDARDIZED FIELD EVALUATIONS ARE MEANINGLESS - neither the Federal Government (NHTSA), Georgia Peace Officers Training Counsel (POST) nor the medical community considers touching your finger to your nose, or saying the alphabet, or counting backwards, as valid, standardized sobriety evaluations. Further, there is no valid research that they predict impairment in anyway.
POLICE CAR VIDEOS - many police agencies video all arrest from the police car recording sober driving, good field evaluations, improper arrest, invalid implied consent or breath test rights, misinformation, officer threats and coercion, hope of benefit, discrediting the officer and/or resulting in dismissals.
PORTABLE BREATH TESTING DEVICE NOT APPROVED - A portable breath testing instrument must be listed on the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Division of Forensic Services approved list of Devices, or the results are inadmissible.
FAILURE TO PROVE DRIVING - a defendant's admission to driving, without corroboration or more evidence, does not prove a charge of driving under the influence.
BAD WEATHER / HEAVY TRAFFIC / FLASHING LIGHTS - Weather reports establishing high winds, low visibility, and other conditions are available to explain poor driving or poor balance.
BREATH MACHINE NOT PROPERLY OPERATED - the manufacturers of breath testing devices have specified methods and protocols which must be followed for a breath result to be valid. Failure to follow these rules will result in improper and/or inadmissible readings.
911 TAPES - most stops of vehicles are recorded on 911 or police radio tapes, as well as radio traffic regarding the arrest of an individual. These tapes can be used to disprove officer testimony and win DUIs.
FULL INFORMATION - Individuals who submit to blood or breath tests are entitled to full information regarding the tests upon request or the tests can be excluded or trial postponed.

Atlanta DUI and Georgia DUI cases requires expert representation from aggressive, experienced Atlanta DUI Attorneys . Even if you don't hire us, please hire somebody qualified - do not go to court alone!

Atlanta DUI: What Does Given Blood Alcohol Level Mean?

2010-07-02T10:07:00.001-07:00

There are three legal limits applicable to Blood Alcohol under Georgia DUI Law.

1. 0.02 is the legal limit for persons under twenty one (21) years of age.
2. 0.08 is the legal limit for adults over twenty one (21) years of age driving non-commercial vehicles.
3. 0.04 is the legal limit for persons driving commercial vehicles or large trucks or buses.

Atlanta DUI Law provides for legal inferences for blood alcohol under 0.08 grams. From 0.05 to just under 0.08 grams, this is no presumption of either impairment or sobriety. Under 0.05 grams, there is a presumption of sobriety.

Here's Your Blood Alcohol Level Calculator

This Blood Alcohol Level Chart provides the alcohol calculator taught to Georgia Law Enforcement Officer up until the 2006 revision of the Intox 5000 operator training manual which recognizes the gender bias in blood alcohol measurement. This calculator estimates your blood alcohol content based on the number of 5% alcohol beers, one ounce liquor drinks or 4oz glasses of wine you consume relative to your body weight.

What You Should Know About Atlanta DUI

2010-07-02T10:04:00.001-07:00

What does an Atlanta DUI mean?

There are two types of Atlanta DUI

The most standard kind of Georgia DUI is a "per se" dui which means that an accused blood or breath alcohol content is greater than the legal limit of 0.08 grams of alcohol or higher inside of three hours of operating or even being in actual physical control of a moving vehicle from alcohol absorbed prior to, or while driving. A Georgia DUI can also be "per se" in the event that an illegal drug other than marijuana is discovered in your blood or urine. Under existing case law, Marijuana DUIs must be proven by establishing that the driver was a less safe driver because of marijuana use.

The second kind of Atlanta DUI is known as a "less safe" DUI. A "less safe" DUI generally is pursued when an accused is arrested for DUI but there is no blood, urine or breath test available possibly because the test sample had been taken unlawfully and subsequently suppressed by a Court of law or not attained for some other reason. A "less safe" DUI implies that an accused is a less safe driver because they ingested alcohol or drugs previous to, or while driving, than they would have been had they not used alcohol or drugs beyond a reasonable doubt. A less safe DUI can be proven typically three ways: First, direct proof of less safe driving like an accident or weaving; Second, circumstantial evidence of less safe driving based on poor performance on field sobriety tests; and, Third, circumstantial evidence of less safe driving based on an accused physical appearance and demeanor i.e., if you look drunk you probably are drunk.

What can be done if you get a Georgia DUI?

YES, First it is important to hirea Georgia DUI Attorney who practices DUI law on a regular basis and is familiar with the nuanced and very technical issues implicated by a Atlanta DUI arrest. In our Georgia DUI law office, our experience has allowed us to develop interview questions which we ask in every case which identify potential issues which could lead to acquittal or winning your Atlanta DUI case. Second, you must break down your Atlanta DUI arrest and examine the issues. We typically look at the Stop, the Investigation, the Arrest, the Implied Consent or Breath Test rights, the Test or Tests. Our first goal is to win the DUI. However, we also feel that it is also good to have a plan B if your a multiple offender or have a recognized drug or alcohol problem. A valuable part of any DUI defense is a drug and alcohol evaluation, counseling if recommended and Alcoholics Anonymous. A good DUI defense also requires the support of friends and family. A Court is always more likely to have mercy on a Defendant convicted or who pleads guilty to DUI when the Courtroom is full of friends and family rather than one who comes to court alone.

What are field tests?

Police investigate DUIs in two ways by observation and by impairment and divided attention testing commonly known as "Field Tests." Field Tests are absolutely voluntary. Police Officers will rarely inform Drivers of this fact. Police frequently attempt to intimidate and coerce Drivers to perform these "Field Tests" which according to the law enforcement's own training manual only work 77% of the time. That means that one out of four sober people fail these drunk tests. The Police might as well throw you in a pond and see if you float. In many ways the war on drunk driving is a witch hunt. Recent studies published in the Wall Street Journal in February 2005 equated 0.08 grams of alcohol impairment with talking on a cell phone with an ear bud, or simply being 70 years old. These tests are designed to make you look silly. Generally, there is no benefit from performing these field tests. Police will generally arrest you for simply having alcohol on your breath regardless of what you do. See the Police Officer's Field Evaluation Training Manual.

HGN or Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus
Never take the HGN test. A HGN test looks for twitching in the eye due to disequilibrium caused by alcohol in the body. First, the Officer asks if the Accused is wearing contacts. Second, he asks the Accused to follow instructions. The failure to follow instructions is allegedly an indication of alcohol impairment. The Officer asks that the Accused follow a stimulus like a pen or finger. The Officer then passes his finger side to side approximately 15 inches from the Accused's face at approximately four seconds a pass in order to determine if the Accused eyes follow the stimulus smoothly and each eye tracks the stimulus equally which can be a symptom of a traumatic brain injury or brain disorder.

The Officer then passes the stimulus in front of the Accused face at two second passes in order to look for twitching prior to the eye reaching a forty five degree angle from the nose. Finally, the Officer holds the pass at maximum deviation and looks for twitching before 4 seconds elapses. The Officer looks for a total of six clues or three clues in each eye as follows: does the eye pursue smoothly, twitching prior to the onset of forty five degrees, and twitching at maximum deviation. Two out of six clues is supposed to mean a blood alcohol level under 0.08. Four out of six clues is supposed to mean a blood alcohol level of 0.08. Six out of six clues is supposed to mean an alcohol concentration of 0.10 or more. What the police don't tell you that they learned in training is that the HGN does not always work.

First, everyone has a natural nystagmus or twitching in the eye. Second, strobe lights or flashing lights can cause the eye to twitch. Sudden changes in heat and cold can cause the eye to twitch, among other things. The bottom line is that HGN may work well in the dark office of an ophthalmologist or optometrist but not on the side of the Interstate.

The Walk and Turn
The Nine Step Walk and Turn is second dreaded divided attention tests. In the Nine-Step Walk and Turn, the Accused is asked to follow instructions and perform tests to measure physical dexterity. First, the Accused is told to assume a position with his left foot in front of his right foot with his hands at his side. The Officer then demonstrates the walk and turn exercise.

The Accused is supposed to be informed that he is not to begin the exercise until told to do so. The Accused is then told to take nine heel to toe steps while counting out loud on an imaginary line. The ground is supposed to be level and free of debris. After demonstrating the exercise, the Officer then tells the Accused to begin.

There are allegedly several clues to intoxication: starting to soon, losing balance during the instructional phase, failure to keep hands at side, stepping off the line, not counting out loud, not touching heel to toe on each step, not performing a turn using shuffle steps and pivoting on the right foot as instructed. There are some sixty four possible clues on a walk and turn test. However, the State has categorized them into eight general categories.

The Alphabet Test
The Alphabet Test is not a validated field sobriety tests. It is merely a common sense performance test. Most people know their ABCs but many can not say their ABCs without singing them and have not recited them since the 2nd or 3rd grade in elementary school.

Some officers will ask you to recite the alphabet starting at a letter other than A and ending with a letter other than Z. Some officers will ask you to say your ABCs backwards. If you refuse they will ridicule you and call you stupid, but unless you have recited your alphabet lately I do not recommend it as it is easy to err. Always politely refuse the alphabet test.

Miscellaneous Field Tests

Some officers will ask the accused to count with their fingers and do various other strange maneuvers. these are designed to make an accused fail. Always politely refuse this testing.

What are the punishments for a Atlanta DUI ?

An Atlanta DUI offense is a misdemeanor meaning that it might result in one year in jail and a fine of up to $1000.00. If the DUI is designated as a high and aggravating misdemeanor , subsequently the fine might reach $5000.00. These are the upper limits. There are statutorily required minimum punishments based upon an accused DUI history.

-For a first DUI in five years, State law requires a minimum of 24 hours in Jail, 40 hours of community service, twelve months of reporting probation, and one year license suspension (a work permit is available for those who do not refuse a test and a probationary license is available for non-refusal DUIs after 120 days for those who go to DUI School and pay a $210.00 reinstatement fee).

-For second DUI in five years, State law requires a minimum of 72 hours in jail, 240 hours community service, 17 week DUI school, ,drug and alcohol evaluation, license plate confiscation, picture in the newspaper, and a 3 year license suspension (one year with no license, after one year an accused can drive with a breath device installed on their vehicle for six months, and 18 months with a probationary license.

-On a third DUI in five years, if you have to ask you probably can't afford to get one.

What is the Ten Day Warning?

Georgia law requires law enforcement to issue a form DPS-1205 to those individuals who decline chemical testing or whose blood or breath alcohol is in excess of 0.08 inside of three hours of driving which is both a thirty day limited driving permit and notice of intention to suspend in thirty days. If a letter is not sent to the Department of Motor Vehicle Safety within 10 business days of arrest a driver can lose his license thirty days after arrest even in the absence of a conviction. Georgia now charges a filing fee for this letter!

What is the Commercial Driver's License Warning?

Federal regulations enacted into law in Georgia in October of 2004 require that individuals who received DUIs even in their personal non-commercial vehicle lose their Commercial Driving Privileges for one year. Second time DUI offenders are disqualified from driving for life.

What Should You Do If You Are Charged with a Georgia DUI?

Hire a Georgia DUI Attorney right away. You have ten days to get started, and a DUI conviction can and will seriously impact your livlihood, career and personal life. Choose an Atlanta DUI Attorney that have experience, relationships, and tenacity.

Do Atlanta DUI Quotas Exist?

2010-07-02T10:02:00.000-07:00

DUI quotas are a reality. Are they unfair? Yes. Innocent people get sent to jail more often when DUI quotas are in place. In a stunning article last month, it was reported that the Roswell Police Department had a DUI quota of 25 per month. Another quota scandal was reported in New York recently where officers where required to write 25 summons and 1 arrest per month.

Meeting the DUI Quota
Yes, That Means it's a Quota. Interestingly, if you ask a police officer under oath on the witness stand if he has a quota he will say unequivocally no. But ask if there are performance goals for DUI arrests and you'll get a different answer.

Specialty police units depend on federal grant money, which, in order to be obtained through the state government, requires reaching DUI quotas.. The grant applications for federal money also require specialty police units to meet objectives for DUI road block quotas and convictions, as well as DUI arrest quotas. If these requirements are not met, the federal DUI money will not be re-newed and they may have to actually pay back the grant funds. This results in extraordinary pressure on Metro Atlanta DUI Police Officers to make large numbers of DUI arrests or face termination, transfer to shifts or duty with less pay, loss of overtime, loss of specialized training and related travel expenses and other fringe benefits.

Inside Edition finds evidence of DUI Quotas
The television show Inside Edition profiled a case of a prominent Florida man who was arrested for DUI yet registered 0.00 alcohol in his system on all DUI tests - he was simply tired, yet arrested anyway.

Inside Edition spoke with Tony Corroto, a DUI field sobriety expert and former Atlanta DUI police offer, who has experience with thousands of police DUI stops. Corroto explains that many police departments all the country are afraind they'll lose federal funding if they don't meet quotas: "It's a quota absolutely".

The existence of DUI quotas are yet another reason that if you are charged with an Atlanta DUI, its imperative that you hire representation that understands how the system works, and can expose factors, such as DUI quotas, in court. For this reason, if charged with an Atlanta DUI, its very important that you retain an Atlanta DUI attorney who knows how the system works and will aggressively defend your rights.