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When Can an Officer Make a DUI Arrest Without a Warrant?

By Lawrence Koplow, Esq.

In almost all DUI cases the police officer will make an arrest without an arrest warrant.  To make a lawful arrest the police officer must have "probable cause" to believe the person was driving under the influence of alcohol (DUI).  Arizona has codified this probable cause requirement in Arizona Revised Statute §13-3883. Arizona courts have defined probable cause as "such a state of facts as would lead a reasonable man of ordinary caution or prudence to believe and consciously entertain a strong suspicion of guilty." State v. Emery, 131 Ariz. 493, 642 P.2d 838 (1982).  When the constitutional validity of an arrest is challenged, the court must decide if the facts available to the officer at the moment of arrest “warrant a man of reasonable caution in the belief” that an offense has been committed...continue to full post

Full post as published by Arizona DUI Defense Blog on October 08, 2007 (boomark / email).