Driving while Intoxicated – Instruction re: Probable Cause 

Posted: 1:00 am Mon, March 15, 2010
By admin

1. 10A Minnesota Practice, CRIMJIG 29.28 (Supp. 2009), does not accurately state the definition of probable cause because it implies that a law-enforcement officer’s subjective belief alone is sufficient to justify a traffic stop. The incorrect instruction had no significant impact on the verdict in this case, however, because in explaining the reason for his belief that defendant was impaired, the officer testified to the objective facts that gave him cause to stop defendant’s car.

2. The District Court does not err by determining as a matter of law that a person arrested for impaired driving had reasonable and adequate time to contact an attorney.

Affirmed.