What do officers look for during the One-Leg Stand?

What this video covers

• The One-Leg Stand field sobriety exercise
• The impairment clues officers watch for
• Why knowing the clues matters

Attorney commentary

The One-Leg Stand is one of the standardized field sobriety exercises described in NHTSA training materials. It is an observation tool, not a chemical test, and it is not the same request as a breath, blood, or urine test under Florida's implied-consent statute. Officers are trained to watch for specific clues while the person holds the position: swaying, using the arms for balance, hopping, or putting a foot down. How the exercise was instructed, whether the surface and footwear made the stance unreliable, and whether medical conditions or nerves explain the same movements are all part of later evidence review. Florida DUI still has to be proved under section 316.193, Florida Statutes. A clue on a roadside exercise is not automatically that proof. Knowing what the officer is looking for matters because those observations often appear in the arrest report as if they were objective measurements. They are scored observations. This clip demonstrates the stance and the clues. It is not a recommendation to take or refuse the exercise in every case. That decision depends on the stop. Related issues — whether the exercises are treated as voluntary, and how a later breath-test request is different — are covered in other videos and in the breath-test refusal guide.

Full transcript

Think standing on one leg is easy? Try doing it while an officer is watching every move. During the One-Leg Stand, officers are looking for specific clues that may indicate impairment — like swaying, using your arms for balance, hopping, or putting your foot down. Knowing what officers are looking for matters.

Florida law and sources

• DWI Detection and Standardized Field Sobriety Test (SFST) resourcesNHTSA
• SFST Participant Manual (PDF)NHTSA