Massachusetts DWI DUI OUI Field Sobriety Test Police Training Manual

REQUIRED ABILITIES

Proper face-to-face observation and interview of the driver demands two distinct but related abilities:

• the ability to recognize the sensory evidence of alcohol and/or other drug influence; and

• the ability to describe that evidence clearly and convincingly. Developing these abilities requires practice.

PRE-EXIT INTERVIEW TECHNIQUES

A basic purpose of the face-to-face observation and interview of the driver is to identify and gather evidence of alcohol and/or other drug influence. This is the purpose of each task in each phase of DWI detection.

During the face-to-face observation and interview stage, it is not necessary to gather sufficient evidence to arrest the driver immediately for DWI.

There are a number of techniques you can use while the driver is still behind the wheel. Most of these techniques apply the concept of divided attention. They require the driver to concentrate on two or more things at the same time. They include both questioning techniques and psychophysical (mind/body) tasks.

These techniques are not as reliable as the standardized field sobriety tests but they can still be useful for obtaining evidence of impairment. THESE
TECHNIQUES DO NOT REPLACE THE SFST.

Questioning Techniques

The questions you ask and the way in which you ask them can constitute simple divided attention tasks. Three techniques are particularly pertinent:

• asking for two things simultaneously;

• asking interrupting or distracting questions; and,

• asking unusual questions.

An example of the first technique, asking for two things simultaneously, is requesting that the driver produce both the driver’s license and the vehicle registration. Possible evidence of impairment may come to light as the driver responds to this dual request. Be alert for the driver who:

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