When a Florida Sherriff's department dispatched a "be on the lookout" (BOLO) alert for a 2007 Chevy Impala, a Monroe County deputy did a sharp u-turn after realizing he had passed a vehicle matching the description, parked on the side of the road. The alert was an attempt to locate a missing person through the assistance of OnStar services. OnStar, the General Motors communication system, can use its' GPS technology to assist police officers in situations where a police report of a missing person has been filed. In this case, it was the OnStar representative who advised the police dispatch of the car's exact location.
The officer approached the parked car and found a woman sitting in the driver's seat with the keys in the ignition and car running. A man was outside the vehicle, leaning against it. The officer made contact with the woman and asked her for identification. Her ID matched the information of the woman reported missing. The woman, a North Palm Beach resident, told the officer she had an argument earlier in the day with her husband and decided to take a trip to Key West with her friend. They had been driving for a while and decided to stop and rest. She felt her husband was making an attempt at getting back at her by reporting her as missing.
According to the deputy, the woman had bloodshot and watery eyes, slurred speech, and a strong odor of alcohol on her breath. He also noticed inside the vehicle there were open containers of alcoholic beverages. The woman noted she was taking medication for bipolar disorder and depression. The deputy asked the woman to perform voluntary field sobriety testing. Based on his investigation he placed the woman under arrest for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) under Fla. Statute 316.193. The 41 year old woman was also issued a civil citation for Open Container, Fla. Statute 316.1936(2)(a) and transported to Key West Jail. The Department of Motor Vehicles suspended the woman's license.
The woman was a first time offender and turned to the highly seasoned Miami DUI attorneys at Musca Law for legal counsel. Our experienced attorneys handle DMV proceedings in addition to representing DUI clients in the criminal phase of their case. We conduct a thorough investigation and exhaust every legal option in an effort to devise an effective defense strategy for DUI arrests.
Our DUI attorneys actively engaged in negotiations with the State Attorney in an attempt to resolve our client's case as expeditiously as possible. First, we researched the facts to determine whether the State Attorney could prove our client was the driver of the vehicle. The issue of the BOLO alert was also called into question by our DUI defense team. The alert was generated by a 3rd party source, OnStar. The alert was based solely on statements of a 3rd party and had numerous levels of hearsay.
The officer originally drove by the parked car, but for the alert, the officer would not have made the arrest. The sole credibility for the stop/approach of our client's vehicle was the OnStar BOLO. We questioned the State's ability to ultimately admit the OnStar BOLO into evidence, or otherwise use it to support the officer's stop/approach investigation and questioning of our client. The State Attorney realized the officer's observation may not have been enough to legally justify the stop. As a result, the DUI charge was reduced to Reckless Driving. The misdemeanor charge of Open Container was dropped.
