A drug recognition officer, or DRE, is a police officer trained in a 12 step evaluation used when drug impairment is suspected. The DRE forms an opinion about impairment, and that opinion can be examined like any other piece of evidence.
When a DRE becomes part of a DUI investigation
Most DUI arrests involve alcohol, and the breath test on the Intoxilyzer 8000 is the usual chemical test. When an officer suspects that a driver is impaired by a drug instead of, or in addition to, alcohol, the investigation can take a different direction. This can happen when the observations do not seem to match a breath result, or when other signs point toward drugs.
Florida DUI law covers impairment of normal faculties by alcohol or by a chemical or controlled substance. A DUI charge therefore does not require any alcohol at all, and that is the reason a separate kind of evaluation exists.
What the 12 step evaluation is meant to do
DREs are officers who have been trained in a 12 step evaluation. The steps give the officer a structured way to assess whether a person is impaired and whether drugs may be the cause. Because the process follows set steps, the defense can compare what was actually done with what the training calls for.
It helps to be precise about what the evaluation produces. It produces an officer's opinion. It does not measure a drug level in the body, and it is not a lab result.
How the evaluation fits with blood and urine results
A DRE evaluation is often paired with a chemical test. Blood tests are used in some cases, such as when drugs are suspected, and urine tests can be used when drug impairment is suspected. A urine test shows the presence of a substance, not necessarily impairment at the time of driving.
That gap is where the DRE's opinion tends to carry weight. The state may rely on the officer to connect a substance found in a sample to impairment behind the wheel. How strong that connection is depends on the details of both the evaluation and the testing.
Prescriptions add another layer. A valid prescription is not a defense if the driver's normal faculties were impaired, so the question in a prescription case is still impairment. The presence of a prescribed medication does not, by itself, answer that question.
How the defense examines a DRE's work
The DRE's notes, forms and any recordings come in through discovery, and Florida allows depositions of witnesses in criminal cases. Those depositions are narrower in misdemeanor cases, including most DUIs, where the defense generally has to show good cause first. A deposition gives the defense a chance to ask how each step was performed, what was observed and recorded, and what other explanations were considered.
Illness, fatigue, injury, nerves and some medical conditions can produce signs that overlap with drug impairment. Whether any of these matters in a given case depends on the full record. A free case review with DUI Lawyers Shield Firm can include the DRE paperwork once it has been produced.
Keep reading
- Can You Refuse Field Sobriety Tests in Florida?
- Plea Bargain vs Trial in a Florida DUI Case
- How a Motion to Suppress Works in a Florida DUI Case
General information only, not legal advice. Every case depends on its own facts, and prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.
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