How Michigan officers build impaired-driving cases

Michigan officers need reasonable suspicion to stop a vehicle and probable cause to arrest a driver for operating while intoxicated. They may look for erratic driving, alcohol or drug odors, slurred speech, bloodshot eyes, nervousness and difficulty handling documents.

Officers can use standardized field sobriety tests, preliminary breath tests and, in suspected drug cases, evaluations by drug recognition experts. Investigators may also seek blood or urine samples, while prosecutors consider crashes, injuries, property damage, prior convictions and other aggravating factors. In Midland County, impairment-related charges totaled 252 in 2023, 221 in 2024 and 244 in 2025.

Read the full story at ourmidland.com.