Policy Text
I. POLICY
It is the policy of the Aventura Police Department to have Officers conduct an
investigation, and take the appropriate law enforcement action when contact is
made with drivers that may be impaired by alcohol or drugs.
II. PROCEDURES CALEA 61.1.5 a
A. Officers contacting drivers who are apparently impaired by alcohol and/or
drugs should conduct an investigation to determine the degree of
impairment and should take the appropriate action. When handling
suspected DUI violators, the Officer will take the following actions:
1. Carefully note any erratic driving patterns and traffic violations to
establish a justification to conduct a traffic stop.
2. Exercise good traffic stop techniques, requesting a back-up unit as
deemed necessary.
3. Observe the driver's physical condition, noting such things as:
a. disarranged hair or clothes,
b. flush face,
c. slurred speech,
d. glassy and/or bloodshot eyes,
e. impaired coordination,
f. verbal statements, and
g. other unusual behavior.
4. Take note of other physical evidence such as alcoholic beverage
containers or drugs in plain view, odor of an alcoholic beverages,
marijuana, etc.
B. On occasion, an Officer may be requested by another Officer (off-duty
Officer or supervisor, for example) to assist in making a DUI arrest. If an
Officer is requesting to make a DUI arrest based on another Officer's
observation of the offense, the Officer called upon to assist the requesting
Officer can make the arrest. The responding Officer may take custody of the
suspect and complete all processing in the same manner as if the Officer
had actually witnessed the offense. In the event an arrest is made under
these circumstances, the following will apply:
1. The on-duty Officer responding will conduct all applicable sobriety
exercises and complete the required reports.
2. The other person that observed the violator will be listed in the
witness section of the Arrest Affidavit or Offense Incident Report (if
required). This Officer must issue the citations for infractions
observed prior to the traffic stop.
C. On occasion, an Officer may request another agency's Officer to assist in the
processing of a DUI violator. This may be due to a Departmental DUI
certified Officer not being available. In such case, the following will apply:
1. The Officer should receive approval from a supervisor to contact
another agency.
2. Fill out all citations applicable to the violation, excluding the DUI
citation. The DUI citation can only be filled out by an Officer that has
a valid breath-testing certification.
3. Complete the arrest form and attach the white copies of the citation(s)
to the front of the form, and attach the defendant's copies to the last
page of the form. The Officer's arrest form should include, but is not
limited to the following:
a. observation of driving actions,
b. observation of driver's physical condition,
c. statements or speech impairments,
d. physical evidence,
e. disposition of driver's vehicle, and
f. name of the Officer that processed the defendant.
4. All reports required to be forwarded to the State Attorney's Office,
DHSMV Driver Improvement Office or to the Clerk of County
Courts should be submitted by the breath-testing Officer.