Police officers go to extremes to make sure that people do not drive while intoxicated. However, not all drivers facing DUI charges are guilty. Former New York Mets player and current minor league manager, Jesus Feliciano, was arrested under suspicion of driving under the influence, but is contending that he was wrongfully arrested.
Feliciano was allegedly operating a vehicle that was weaving on the interstate. The police pulled Feliciano over after he exited on to a city street and arrested him for drunk driving. The arrest occurred the night before Game 1 of the league championship series for Feliciano’s minor league team, Emeralds of the Northwest League.
Feliciano’s attorneys stated that Feliciano submitted to an intoxilyzer and blew a 0.0. Feliciano maintains that he was wrongfully arrested and intends to prove his innocence in court once additional forensic evidence is available.
When a driver submits to a Breathalyzer test or other form of testing, there is no guarantee that the results are accurate. Police officers may not be properly trained to administer the test or they may make mistakes in administering the test. Sometimes, the issue is with the testing device itself. Faulty testing devices that are not properly calibrated cannot give accurate results.
In some cases, the driver may be arrested based on the officer’s observations, even if the breath or chemical test shows that he or she is not under the influence. A qualified criminal defense attorney is trained to poke holes in the prosecution’s arguments and defend their client in court. If the defense can show that the test results were faulty or that the officer’s observations were incorrect, they may get their client’s penalties lessened or charges dropped entirely.
Source: USA Today, Minor league manager arrested for DUI the night before playoff series
