Officers are trained to look for eight clues on the Walk and Turn test, and observing two or more of them is treated as an indicator that the driver’s blood alcohol concentration is at or above the legal limit.1National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Standardized Field Sobriety Testing SFST Refresher Manual The maximum score is eight. The pass/fail line is two. Knowing which specific behaviors count, how they get recorded, and where the test’s weaknesses lie matters if you are ever stopped or need to contest the results later.
The Eight Clues
Each clue targets a specific breakdown in balance, coordination, or the ability to follow directions. Officers watch for these and only these:1National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Standardized Field Sobriety Testing SFST Refresher Manual
- Cannot keep balance during instructions. You sway, shift your feet, or break the heel-to-toe stance while the officer is still explaining the test.
- Starts too soon. You begin walking before the officer finishes the instructions.
- Stops while walking. You pause for several seconds during the walking phase.
- Misses heel-to-toe. You leave a gap of half an inch or more between the heel of one foot and the toe of the other on any step.
- Steps off the line. You place an entire foot off the designated line.
- Uses arms for balance. You raise one or both arms more than six inches from your sides.
- Improper turn. You spin or pivot in a single motion instead of keeping your lead foot planted and taking a series of small steps around it.
- Incorrect number of steps. You take more or fewer than nine steps in either direction.
The first two clues are scored during the instruction stage, before you ever start walking. The remaining six are scored during the walking stage itself. Officers are required to demonstrate several heel-to-toe steps so you can see what is expected.2National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. DWI Detection and Standardized Field Sobriety Testing Refresher Participant Manual
How the Clues Are Counted
Each clue is recorded once, no matter how many times it occurs. If you miss heel-to-toe on six of your eighteen steps, that still counts as one clue, not six. The scoring is about whether a category of error happened, not how often.
If you cannot complete the test at all, officers are trained to treat that outcome the same as two or more clues. It counts as a fail.
How Accurate the Test Actually Is
NHTSA’s own research puts the Walk and Turn at about 79% accuracy for identifying drivers at or above a .08 blood alcohol concentration. That figure comes from a 1998 validation study conducted with officers in San Diego.3Office of Justice Programs. Validation of the Standardized Field Sobriety Test Battery at BACs Below 0.10 Percent
In practical terms, roughly one in five people who show two or more clues are not actually over the legal limit. That built-in error rate is one reason the Walk and Turn is almost never used on its own; officers typically administer it alongside the Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus and One-Leg Stand tests.
Conditions That Can Produce False Clues
The Walk and Turn was validated under controlled conditions: a flat, dry, well-lit surface and reasonably healthy adults. Real DUI stops rarely look like that, and NHTSA’s training materials acknowledge that certain conditions compromise the test’s reliability.
Physical and medical factors that can produce clues unrelated to impairment include:
- Age. People 65 or older may have balance and coordination issues that have nothing to do with alcohol.
- Weight. Individuals who are significantly overweight can struggle with the heel-to-toe stance.
- Leg, back, or inner ear conditions. Injuries, chronic pain, and vestibular disorders directly affect balance.
- Footwear. High heels, boots, or sandals make heel-to-toe walking unreliable. Officers are supposed to offer the option of removing unsuitable shoes.
Environment matters just as much. Uneven pavement, gravel shoulders, steep inclines, poor lighting, and wet or icy surfaces all make the test harder regardless of sobriety. Wind, traffic noise, and flashing emergency lights can distract anyone trying to count steps and follow instructions at the same time. If any of these were present during your test, they become relevant later.
You Can Usually Refuse
Field sobriety tests are voluntary in most situations. They are not covered by implied consent laws, and an officer cannot legally compel you to perform the Walk and Turn. Most states impose no automatic penalty for declining.
Refusing is not cost-free, though. Officers can still arrest you based on other observations, such as the smell of alcohol, slurred speech, or erratic driving, and prosecutors sometimes argue that refusal suggests you knew you would fail. If you have a medical condition that would produce false clues, politely declining and explaining why may be a better choice than performing the test and generating a failing score you then have to fight in court.
Chemical tests after an arrest are a different matter. Implied consent laws in every state require you to submit to a breath or blood test once you have been arrested for DUI, and refusing carries consequences like automatic license suspension.
Challenging Walk and Turn Results
Most courts allow Walk and Turn results as circumstantial evidence of impairment. They are not treated as proof of a specific blood alcohol level. An officer can testify about what clues were observed, and the defense can challenge how much weight those observations deserve. Most jurisdictions treat errors in how the test was administered as a reason to discount the results rather than exclude them entirely.
Effective challenges tend to fall into a few categories. Deviations from NHTSA’s standardized procedure come first: if the officer skipped the demonstration, gave incomplete instructions, or used an unsuitable testing surface, the validation research behind the 79% accuracy figure no longer applies to that stop.4National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. DWI Detection and Standardized Field Sobriety Testing Participant Manual Physical or medical conditions that explain the clues without impairment come second. Environmental conditions at the scene come third, and defense attorneys routinely subpoena dashcam or bodycam footage to show the actual testing surface rather than relying on the officer’s written report.
The test’s own accuracy rate helps here. A 79% figure means documented false positives exist in the research, and defense counsel can put a concrete number in front of a jury. When the Walk and Turn was the only test administered, or when the officer failed to record results on a standardized scoring sheet, those challenges carry even more weight.