The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) identified 24 cues for police officers to detect nighttime impaired drivers.
24 Initial Visual DWI Detection Cues
- Weaving
- Weaving Across Lane Lines
- Straddling A Lane Line
- Swerving
- Turning With Wide Radius
- Drifting
- Almost Striking Object or Vehicle
- Stopping Problems (too far, too short, too jerky)
- Accelerating Or Decelerating Rapidly
- Varying Speed
- Slow Speed (10 m.p.h. + Under Limit)
- Driving In Opposing Lanes Or Wrong Way On One-Way Street
- Slow Response to Traffic Signals
- Slow Or Failure To Respond To Officer's Signal's
- Stopping in Lane for No Apparent Reason
- Driving Without Headlights At Night
- Failure to Signal or Signal Inconsistent with Action
- Following Too Closely
- Improper or Unsafe Lane Change
- Illegal or Improper Turn (too fast, jerky, sharp, etc.)
- Driving on Other Than Designated Roadway
- Stopping Inappropriately In Response To Officer
- Inappropriate Or Unusual Behavior (throwing objects, arguing, etc.)
- Appearing to be Impaired
The police officer may only have identified one, two, or even three of these cues as part of his probable cause to make the stop. Set an appointment to how this impacts your Missouri DWI case.