Articles Tagged with Standardized Field Sobriety Tests

November 16, 2025

Breath, Blood, Bull: Challenging NC DWI SFSTs

This post continues the Breath, Blood, and Bull series, an in-depth look at how science, procedure, and perception collide in the prosecution and defense of DWI cases in North Carolina. The first installment examined the limits of chemical testing. The second article turned to the machines that interpret alcohol breath samples into evidence, using the “breathalyzer.” This post focuses on the field sobriety tests or “SFSTs” that often precede BAC testing.

Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFSTs) are a battery of three roadside exercises: Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN), Walk-and-Turn (WAT), and One-Leg Stand (OLS), designed by NHTSA to gauge impairment.

When prosecutors rely on Standardized Field Sobriety Tests to support a DWI charge, the assumption is that these dexterity exercises offer reliable, objective proof of impairment. Yet the science tells a more complicated story.

August 31, 2024

A Critical Analysis of Standardized Field Sobriety Tests in North Carolina DUI Cases

by Carolina Attorneys

In the realm of DUI law enforcement and prosecution, few tools have garnered as much attention and controversy as Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFSTs).

These tests, designed to help law enforcement officers assess a driver’s level of impairment, have become a cornerstone of DUI investigations across the United States.

However, their reliability and accuracy have long been the subject of debate among legal professionals, including judges, prosecutors, DUI defense lawyers, expert witnesses, and scientists.