Urine tests are no longer required when the police believe that a person is driving under the influence of alcohol and can not safely operate a motor vehicle. For those of us old enough to have practiced back when these tests were required, I can remember some of the controversies surrounding urine tests and a client's ability to give urine at the time of their arrest.
Today, the police are not required to use urine tests related to alcohol-related DUIs in Los Angeles because the accuracy of these tests in detecting alcohol in the system is questionable. The two main recognized tests for alcohol detection are the blood and breath tests.
Law enforcement must give one of these tests if they suspect a person is under the influence of alcohol. The most accurate of these two tests is the blood test, but both are subject to attack under the right circumstances.
However, urine tests can still be utilized in certain situations, such as when a person is suspected of having drugs in their system and can not safely operate a motor vehicle. In these cases, the police will also call in a drug recognition expert to perform several tests designed to determine if a person is under the influence of a drug that affects their ability to operate a motor vehicle safely.
The critical thing that they have to prove is that the person was under the influence of the drug at the time of the subject's driving. This becomes difficult to prove because it is hard to determine when the person ingested the drug and how potent it was at the time of driving.
Other DUI Tests to Evaluate Drunk Driving
In addition to the urine test itself, the authorities will evaluate how the person was driving (were they swerving or driving recklessly), how their speech was (were they slurring their words or talking usually), and how their balance was when they performed the field sobriety tests. These tests include the walk-and-turn test, the one-leg stand test, and the horizontal gaze nystagmus test, which measures the involuntary jerking of the eyes as they gaze to the side.
If you find yourself in the unfortunate situation of being arrested for a DUI in Los Angeles, I strongly advise you to seek legal counsel. While it's not possible to cover every aspect of a DUI case on this website, a legal advisor can provide personalized guidance and support, helping you understand the circumstances of your case and what you're up against.
From my experience, I've seen that once individuals understand the situation they're in and the steps they can take to improve it, a sense of calm and peace often follows. A DUI is not the end of the world. With the right guidance and actions, there is a light at the end of the tunnel.
