So, left foot on the line, right foot in front of left, and go. All right. I'm not Simone Biles, okay? All right, that's fair. And then >> With the Athens-Clarke County Police Department made a traffic stop on this vehicle for traveling approximately 63 mph in a 40 zone. He told me an amount, I believe it was 63, I'm just kind of iffy on 62 or 63. Either way, more than 20 mph over the speed limit. All right, this is Judge Darrell Breed of the Magistrate Court of Athens-Clarke County. Before me is Officer Cena of the city. He has an affidavit of a proposed blood search warrant for the suspect, Amanda. Uh it is October 11th, 2024. Raise your right hand. You swear or affirm to tell the truth? I did. All right, what did you tell me? On October 11th, 2024, Athens-Clarke County Police executed a textbook DUI investigation culminating in a constitutional blood warrant after the driver refused testing. The stop was rock solid. 63 in a 40 zone plus lane violations gave officers clear authority under Warren versus United States. Hey, what's going on? Well, you were going pretty fast and you were kind of swerving on the roadway. I I'm sorry. That's okay. You want to talk to that officer right there, the sergeant? >> Yeah, I can Yeah, I was wondering what it was for. Where were Where are we headed to tonight? Um so, I live at my parents' house, I'm on my way there. I just dropped off a friend and going to Brooklyn. Okay. Have you had anything to drink tonight or anything? Just be honest. >> Honestly, like honestly, like an hour ago. Okay, cuz I caught you up at 63 and Rosamond. Okay. And then by the time I got behind you I could see that you were all you were going over both lanes. What do you mean hang out here? Like hang out here. Ooh, ooh, I smell it. Yeah, you're right. You're right. Yeah. I smell it. I smell it. Where did you come from? I got I got I got I got smell it all the way. Okay. So uh I stopped uh investigating speeding. However I'm going to let this officer speak with you briefly about the pregnant part. All right. Um how fast do you think you're going? Uh >> I give you if you had a guess for It's 45 here, right? So it's a 40 up there. It does turn into 45 right here, though. Okay. You were in the 40. I was in the 40. I was outside. Mhm. Okay. Probably like 50, 60. Okay. 60. Okay, I got you. All right, so how much did you have to drink? Um I had one tequila tonic when I got there around like 9:30. Okay. I had um my friends bought me a shots at like shortly after that. Okay. Um and I didn't really drink anything. I'm trying to save money. Like I I'm kind of a lightweight. >> Yeah, it gets expensive down there. I I get it. Uh where were you at? You said karaoke. Yeah, at Flicker. Okay, got you. Got you. Got you. All right, then. Um are you all right if I check your eyes make sure you're not drunk? Yeah. Okay. Uh if you don't want to just step over here. We got a little bit better lighting over here. What's up? My eyes? Mhm. Okay. Yeah. Is that okay with you? Yeah. Okay. All All cool. So just stand with your feet together, arms down by your side for me. Uh do you wear contacts or glasses? I wear glasses, but I'm not >> Okay. Not on. Yeah, okay. Unless they're invisible. Yeah. All right. So, just look right here at this red light for me. You're just going to follow this with your eyes and your eyes only. Don't move your head at all, okay? Okay. Keep your head perfectly still for me. Sorry. That's okay. Trying not to. I keep moving my head. Just got to move real slow, all right? Try and stay as still as possible. Okay. Sorry, I got distracted by the moth. >> That's all right. All right. Same thing, just up and down, okay? Okay. Not moving my head. Yeah, no. Don't move your head. Just your eyes. Just follow this with your eyes. See, you moved your head up again. So, just try and keep it level. There you go. Uh if you need to do that, by all means. I keep moving. >> Thank you much. Okay. Uh do you have any issues walking, balancing, anything like that? No. No no medical issues or anything? >> like a mile from my Where you live at? Uh Brookwood. Brookwood. Okay. Okay, I got you. Um are you able to walk in a straight line? Yeah. Okay. Sure. So, uh just stand right over here. We can use a physical line if you want. I usually use an imaginary one. >> really nicely. Okay. Yeah, that works perfectly. Then, come on right over here for me. Now, you just place your left foot on this line right here. Uh left foot? Yeah. The heck is that? Oh, it's a speaker. >> like I have uncomfortable boots. You You can take them off if you want, but the floor's kind of cold. It's okay. Okay. All right. So, yeah, just keep your left left leg right there on on your left foot. All right. So, what I'm going to have you do is now place your right foot in front of your left foot, heel touching toe, just like this, and just remain in that position. So, just remain in that position. Okay. Yep, so left foot on the line. Right foot in front of your left foot, heel touching toe. Go ahead and do that now. And then just stay right there for me, okay? You keep your arms down at your side. This isn't fair. What's that? I just have horrible I'm just clumsy. I got you. I'm clumsy. I got all this stuff on. I got clown feet and I'm standing here. So. Oh, I see. Yeah, just stay right there for me, okay? So, when I tell you to begin, I'm going to have you take nine heel-to-toe steps along that line, just like this. One. Two. Three. You're going to go up to nine steps, leave your lead foot planted when you reach your ninth step, and then take a small series of steps around your lead foot, leaving it planted, and then return with nine heel-to-toe steps back along that line. All right. So, uh do you understand the instructions? Yes, nine steps forward, turn, nine steps back. Yep. All right, whenever you're ready to begin. So, left foot on the line, right foot in front of left, and go. All right. I'm not Simone Biles, okay? Oh, yeah, that's fair. And then nine steps back? Yep. All right. Just come on back right over here. All right, just stand right there again, feet together, arms down at side. Uh where? Uh just on the line again. Yeah, that that works. Uh? Yep. And then so what I'll have you do is you can take a foot of your choice, either your left foot or your right foot. And what you're going to do is you're going to lift it approximately 6 in up off the ground keeping your leg straight and your toe pointed forward so your foot is parallel to the ground. And you'll count 1,001, 1,002, 1,003, so on and so forth until I tell you to put your foot down, okay? Uh if you put your foot down early, just pick it back up and keep counting from where you left off. All right, I'm kind of on an incline here. Okay. Uh wherever you feel comfortable. While you're doing this, make sure your arms stay down at your side and don't hop around or anything like that, okay? Do you understand the instructions? Yes, sir. All right. Whenever you're ready to begin, go ahead. Count out loud for me. Oh. Uh here, let's let's start over. Uh whenever you're ready. Uh so you've got me right out in front of you like this. >> Oh, okay. Yep. Arms down at your side. 1,001 1,002 Okay. I'm not going to be able to do it. Okay. All right, so just do me a favor, place your hands on your back, okay? Right now, no, don't don't pull away from me. Don't pull away from me. It's going to end very badly for you. Don't do that. All right, just put your palms together touching each other like you say in a prayer. Do you have was going rights to me first? All right. Can I grab my purse? No. Can I grab it? No. No. Stop pulling away from me. You're under arrest right now, okay? Can I try it again? No. No, should I try it again? No, ma'am. You're under arrest. Okay. And then just widen your stance just a little bit more for me. I'll just got to sweep your legs. >> Mhm. Okay. All right, you're all good. Just have a seat for me right here, okay? Okay. Um got some stuff to read to you, okay? My Miranda rights? Uh not that yet. Read you the state of Georgia's implied consent notice, okay? How old are you? 35. Okay. All right, so this is [clears throat] an implied consent notice for uh suspects over the age of 21. And uh the state of Georgia has conditioned your privilege to drive upon the highways of this state upon your submission to state administered chemical tests of your blood, breath, urine, or other bodily substances for the purpose of determining if you were under the influence of alcohol or drugs. If you refuse this testing, your Georgia driver's license or privilege to drive on the highways of this state will be suspended for a minimum period of 1 year. Here's where things get interesting. The driver voluntarily admitted drinking a tequila tonic and a shot. She didn't have to say a word. Under Berkemer versus McCarty, traffic stops aren't custodial, so no Miranda required. But that doesn't mean you have to incriminate yourself. The officer ran three NHTSA standardized tests. HGN showed all six clues. Walk and turn, five clues. One leg stand, three clues. That's probable cause lockdown tight under Georgia code 40-6-391. But here's the constitutional pivot point. She refused the breath test. Smart move? Depends. Georgia's implied consent law triggers an automatic license suspension, but Missouri versus McNeely changed the game in 2013. Refusal doesn't stop the investigation, it just requires a warrant. The Supreme Court rejected the idea that alcohol dissipation creates automatic exigency. Fourth Amendment still applies. Birchfield clarified the line. Breath tests can be mandatory. Blood draws required judicial authorization because they're invasive. The officer drafted an affidavit, called a magistrate, testified under oath, and got the warrant signed. Constitutional compliance. Start to finish. Your refusal to submit to blood or urine testing may be offered into evidence against you at trial. If you submit to testing and the results indicate an alcohol concentration of 0.08 g or more, your Georgia driver's license or privilege to drive on the highways of this state may be suspended for a minimum period of 1 year. After first submitting to the requested state tests, you are entitled to additional chemical tests of your blood, breath, urine, or other bodily substances at your own expense and from qualified personnel of your own choosing. Will you submit to the state-administered chemical test of your blood? No. Okay. All right, then. Um give me just a few minutes. I got to figure out what we're going to do uh past here. Um Now, I'm just going to make sure there's nothing crazy in the vehicle or anything like that. Uh give me just a moment, okay? What was that walking turn, man? And the one-legged stand? She just started running around. So, I was doing this and I caught it out my peripheral. I'm like, What the what? Yeah, I I won't need to write much in the report for walking turn other than not done correctly. Uh I think uh every clue was there. Uh it's a refusal. I'm debating on whether I want to get a warrant or do a eval. Oh, well, I crap. This would be a good evening. I got to get re-certified in 14, so And then, I guess we need a server, too. Was she suspended? Yeah. Oh, no kidding. Amazing. >> license was suspended back in June. Hey, can you hear me? Did you know your driver's license was suspended already? Did you know your driver's license was suspended back in June? No. Well, apparently it's up here. Oh, man. >> I guess you got a traffic ticket at some point and you didn't go to court or pay for it. I [clears throat] thought I paid that, though. It's all good. Uh we're probably going to serve you and then I don't know what the change process is for the state of Tennessee, so Okay. All right. All right. Wait, wait. So, what happens now, guys? All right. So, um That's what I'm trying to decide cuz uh >> [sighs] >> Uh I mean, there's no change like you're going to jail tonight. There's nothing that's going to change that right now. Um I'm going to get a search warrant um for your blood, okay? For what? For your blood, so cuz you you refused the implied consent, so I'm it's the option I'm left with, so I've got to I've got to call a judge here in a minute. We're going to take a drive over to the hospital. We'll park there and I'll call a judge and make contact with them and see if they find probable cause to sign a search warrant and if they do, then we're going to go in the hospital and draw your blood. That's only if they sign the search warrant. So, I'm not just going to illegally draw your blood, but if the judge signs the order, we're going to go in there and get the blood drawn, okay? Um I I don't have I I I I can't let you drink anything from in the cuz I don't know what's intoxicants and what's not. It's just water. I I know, but there's there's a lot of medications in the car and then the alcohol. I just I don't want to take any chances. I'm going to run over Piedmont and do a search warrant. Like serge I don't know. Yeah, just a minute. Good morning, sir. I'm sorry to wake you up. This is uh this is Officer Seenus and I have an impaired driver search warrant. Okay, all right. All right, thank you much. All right, let me grab this real quick. Good morning, sir. How are you doing, sir? Good, how are you, sir? All right, sir. So, in the matter here, this is Amanda case number 2024 000353. Can you see the affidavit search warrant? Yes, sir. All right, so we'll begin with the warning. All right, this is Judge Darrell Gray, the Magistrate Court of Athens-Clarke County. Before me is Officer Seenus presenting a proposed affidavit and proposed blood search warrant for suspect Amanda Uh the date is October 11th, 2024. Do you raise your right hand? Do you swear or affirm to tell the truth? I do. All right, what can you tell me? so on this day and time is about 219 in the morning Sergeant Cooper with the Athens-Clarke County Police Department made a traffic stop on this vehicle for traveling approximately 63 miles per hour in the 40 zone. He told me an amount. I believe it was 63. I'm just kind of iffy on 62 or 63 either way more than 20 miles per hour over the speed limit. So he conducted a traffic stop after also observing her failing to maintain her lane on West Broad Street and I arrived on scene to back up Sergeant Cooper maybe 30 seconds after he made the traffic stop and I observed that miss was displaying the following physiological indicators of impairment as drowsiness drippy eyelids glassy eyes. She had the very strong odor of an alcoholic beverage emitting from her mouth as she was speaking to me. She's talkative and has relaxed inhibitions and she is exhibiting an unsteady walk and she's uncoordinated. I conducted standardized field sobriety exercises on her she agreed to participate in them. I observed all six clues in horizontal gaze nystagmus several clues in the walking turn and several clues in one leg stand. I placed miss under arrest and read her the state of Georgia's implied consent notice for persons above the age of 21 requesting a blood sample but she refused to provide it. And now we are at the Piedmont Athens Regional Hospital and I'm seeking this search warrant. All right, it is the order of the court that this is sufficient probable cause to issue a warrant in this period of time. You may go ahead and sign it. Yes. sir. All right, the application has been signed. You may sign the warrant now. Yes, please. All right, both the application and the warrant have been signed on my end. Okay, I can close this and close this matter. Okay, I'll stop the recording. All right, they are good on my end. They do say copy with a kind of watermark across it, but I can just write original on it. I think that's what I did last time. All right, sounds good. Stay safe. Have a good evening. Thank you, sir. You as well. Take care. All right, let me get her in there. Let me pull your jacket up. It's a little chilly. Figured it out. It's got a little Yeah, it's like a sweater. Oh, here it is. Yeah, it's like a sweater. Just had to find the collar. Yeah, okay. Thank you, sir. Yes, ma'am. Oh, sorry. All right, steps just right to the back. Yes, sir. Okay, um so you can stand here, I'll show you this. Um so, I just spoke with the judge and he did sign the warrant, okay? And here is the warrant if you want to read it. Uh I don't have my glasses on. Oh, I got you. Yeah, do whatever you need to. Um but So, this is just basically saying you can take my blood. Yeah. Okay. So, yeah, we're just going to go in and see the phlebotomist. They're really good phlebotomists here. So, that's good at least. I just got to grab a holiday just on the No, it's okay. I was going to try to run away. >> No, no, I I know. I know. I just had this one time where this young girl I had to arrest for DUI I decided that she was going to run in handcuffs and it just ended up being a really bad night for everybody. >> me. Hello there. Hey, just blood alcohol. Be free, okay? I'll call somebody, okay? >> Okay, awesome. Thank you. All right, you just take a seat in that chair. 259 364 Officer Seenis gets an A minus. Perfect legal execution, professional demeanor, textbook NHTSA protocols. Minor tactical positioning note, nothing critical. The driver gets a C minus. Cooperative throughout, avoided escalation. But, she handed prosecutors their case on a silver platter. Admitting consumption, volunteering for field tests. Those were unforced errors. You can be respectful without waving your rights. Athens-Clarke County PD earns an A. Solid training, constitutional policies, professional culture. This is what modern policing should look like. Three takeaways if you're ever in this situation. One, invoke your Fifth Amendment right. Politely decline to answer questions about drinking. Two, field sobriety tests are voluntary. Refusing can't be used against you, though officers may arrest anyway based on other factors. Three, chemical test refusal means license suspension, but it doesn't prevent a warrant. Know the trade-offs before you decide. Bottom line, you can assert your rights while remaining courteous. Constitutional protections exist whether you know about them or not. This case shows both sides doing their jobs within the constitutional framework. That's how the system is supposed to work. Drop a comment with cases you want analyzed. Check out Audit the Court for more legal breakdowns. We'll see you in the next one.