If the officer decides to place you under arrest, do NOT attempt to “talk your way out of it”. Statements like “come on, give me a break”, “if you let me go, I promise I will just walk home”, “I only live right up the road”, etc. will end up in the police report and will be admissible at any trial or administrative hearing for operating under the influence and will, obviously, hurt your case. Following your arrest, you should NEVER attempt to contact the officer or have a friend call a friend of a friend who has a friend who works at the same police department to obtain leniency for you. That tactic will backfire virtually every time. Likewise, do not recite a list of names of police officers whom you know to the arresting officer. Again, this tactic will backfire almost every time. The officer is not required to read you your Miranda rights unless two things have occurred. First, you must be under arrest. The roadside questioning and the conduct of field sobriety tests do not arise to the level of an arrest. Second, you must be subjected to interrogation. Interrogation does not include questions regarding your name and address. Furthermore, interrogation does not include questions from the officer regarding your understanding of the Implied Consent warnings or your willingness to submit to a chemical test (breath test, blood test, or urine test). Interrogation is any question that is designed to elicit an incriminating response. During the course of OUI investigations, officers are trained not to ask questions that constitute interrogation prior to the administration of the breath test. Accordingly, officers will very rarely read you your Miranda rights prior to the administration of a chemical test. Following the provision of Miranda warnings, you need not answer any of the officer’s questions without a lawyer present. Your invocation of your Miranda rights (the right to remain silent, the right to counsel, etc.) is not admissible against you in any trial for operating under the influence. If the opportunity presents itself you should exercise this right without fear of adverse consequences. Following your arrest for operating under the influence, you should contact Nichols & Tucker immediately for a free consultation in order to obtain complete information about your case and advice about how to proceed.