The prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that you were driving under the influence of alcohol to the extent you were a less safe driver. When the State does not have a chemical test, you should challenge your DUI charge if one of the three elements of DUI refusal will be hard to prove.
Insufficient evidence of impairment
The nurse was driving home with her husband. She was on I-16 and stopped at a gas station. In the parking lot a police officer noticed that she was not wearing a seatbelt. One thing led to another and she was charged with DUI Refusal – 40-6-391(a)(1); and No seat belt – 40-8-76.1(e)(3) by the Georgia State Patrol. She refused to take the field sobriety tests. She refused to take a breath test. In the her case there was not enough evidence for probable cause to arrest her for DUI.
In the Recorder’s Court of Chatham County she plead guilty to reckless driving instead of DUI refusal. The charge for No seatbelt was merged into the Reckless driving charge.
Judgment: Nurse’s DUI refusal negotiated to reckless driving
