Reasonable Suspicion and Probable Cause

In order to justify a traffic stop, a law enforcement officer should either have reasonable suspicion or probable cause. A traffic violation is enough to justify a stop. Law enforcement officers make arrests based on probable cause, but they do not determine guilt or innocence. The determination of probable cause is based on the officer’s training and experience. Texas does not require law enforcement officers to update their training for DWI detection. Once an officer is trained to administer field sobriety tests, there is no requirement that the officer take a refresher course. Similarly, officers tend to include information that supports probable cause, while excluding information that may tone down their police reports. It follows that multiple factors may be present that might weaken the state’s case against you. For instance, what were the weather conditions? Weather may affect an individual’s ability to perform field sobriety tests. Where were you when you were pulled over? Your surroundings could also affect your ability to perform field sobriety tests. For example, a person that performed a field sobriety test next to a busy highway might get nervous. Nervousness may affect a person’s ability to perform well on the tests. All of these factors may be important to the outcome of your case.