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Today, law enforcement officers, are looking for more than just the average traffic offender. They are looking for those motorists who drive while impaired after having consumed alcohol or drugs.
Law enforcement officers often look for tell tale signs of impaired drivers who are driving too fast or too slow, who are weaving in and out of their lane of traffic, who do not have their automobile lights

turned on or who are driving with their bright lights on, who are seated too closely to the steering wheel or are leaning too far away from the steering wheel, who show indecisiveness while driving, or who totally disregarding traffic control devices. These are but a few of the items which law enforcement officers look for while on patrol to determine whether sufficient probable cause exists to stop a motorist whom they suspect of driving while impaired. Of course, they also use stationary Sobriety Check Points to come face to face with drivers so that they may look inside of the vehicle for alcohol beverage containers or to smell for the odor of alcoholic beverages on the breath of the driver.

Your first encounter with a law enforcement officer may be upon seeing his emergency lights or hearing his emergency siren. This is your notice to pull over as quickly as possible, but only out of traffic and in a location which is safe for both you and him. Failure to pull over may cause him to bring additional charges against you.

better observe you while he is conducting his investigation. That investigation includes how you react to his questions, whether he detects an odor of alcohol on your breath, and how stable you are on your feet. He will also question you as to where you are going, where you have been and, of course, whether you have been drinking. Your mother may have told you that "honesty is the best policy" and while that may be best, honesty does not mean that you are required to answer every question posed by a law enforcement officer, particularly those questions when answered may incriminate you. We all believe that we can be convincing in our communications with a law enforcement officer. That is simply not correct. Believe me you will not be able to talk an officer out of arresting you should you tell him something like, "But officer, I only had one drink" or "Officer, I am only one block from home," While you do have to identify yourself, you need not answer anything else. By now, everyone knows that law enforcement agents are requried to inform you of your Constitutional rights, but did you know that they can use certain statements against you based on your freely giving them during the initial stop?

In most, if not all, states, a condition of your obtaining a driver license is your agreement to voluntary participation in any test a law enforcement officer may give for purposes of determining whether or not you may driving while impaired. Certain individuals who possess certain types of licenses such as those piloting aircraft mandate your participation in such tests. So your failiure to participate may cause you to lose your pilot license even if you are not flying. The most frequent test given is the Standardized Field Sobriety Test. Those tests include the horizontal and vertical gaze nystagmus tests, straight leg raising tests, and heal to toe walking tests. Even if you believe you have passed each of these tests, the officer can demand your taking a breath test and even a blood test. Your failure to take any of the requested tests could cause you to lose your drivers license for no less than one year. Even if you believe that you could not provide an adequate breath sample due to illness, the officer can still report that you refused to take the test. You have the right to apply for an administrative hearing, however, you only have 15 days in which to request the hearing AND send subpoenas for those officers participating in each phase of the arrest and testing. If you prove that no probable cause existed for the law enforcement officer to stop you, your license will be returned to you. Should you fail at the administrative hearing, you will loose your license for no less than one year. You need to consult with an attorney immediately after being arrested.

Louisiana in particular provides for an enhanced penalty for those convicted of a second or subsequent charge of driving while intoxicated. You may find the penalty for each of a first, second, third and subsequent offense at LRS 14:98. What is of particular importance is that there is a "cleansing" period which allows each conviction to be wiped clean only after the expiration of 10 years from the date of your successful completion of probation. That means that your conviction can still be used against you for enhancement purposes for no less than 10 years and possibly longer depending on the period of probation and whether you have had a further arrest for DWI. There is no cheap way out. You do not want to plead guilty for expediency sake. Consult with an attorney before making a decision which can have a life time of regret associated with it. A fourth offense DWI provides for 10 - 30 years in prison.