One Million people may be on the way. Savannah’s 2012 Saint Patrick’s Day Parade could be the largest in the world.
The Preliminary Breath Test (PBT) is used incorrectly by many police officers in Savannah, Georgia. On Saint Patrick’s Day it gets used worse. The PBT used by the police in Savannah, Georgia is the Alco-Sensor.
The Preliminary Breath Test (PBT) is a roadside initial alcohol screening device. It’s used to confirm the chemical basis of your impairment. The PBT can help to confirm all other evidence and to confirm the officer’s judgment as to whether you are impaired. It’s used to show the presence of alcohol in your system. The PBT does not show how much alcohol you have in your body, but rather if you show any alcohol in your body. Positive Alco-Sensor result is not enough. The PBT should never be the sole basis for a DUI arrest. They are never checked for calibration. Police departments lack the equipment and training. Most importantly, they are not right. For more information on Georgia’s Preliminary Breath Test, see Allen Trapp’s blog post: More on PBT’s. Also, check out Justin McShane’s blog post: DUI Myth Busters: Breath Test Accuracy.
First: the police officer is trained to give you three (3) field sobriety tests (Eye test, Walk and Turn, One Leg Stand). Second: based on these tests, he must decide if there is probable cause to arrest you for DUI. Third and Last: he may give you a PBT.
A good deal of police officers do give you the PBT first or some where in between the three field sobriety tests. This is wrong.
