Dui, and blood tests???
 

A customer of mine got a dui this past weekend in a random dui checkpoint.
He is an ass, and is always wrecking cars and fighting etc, so this is a good thing, but...
He told me that after he failed the road sobriety, and breathalizer tests, that they made him sit down and submit to a blood test. Is this now the norm???
Is refusal to give blood at a dui stop an admission to guilt just like refusal to take a breathalizer???.
I just want to be informed. I dont drink anymore, so I dont worry too much about checkpoints, dui stops etc.. but do they now have the right to take my blood???
I dont think that I would comply with that request if asked. There is only one way the man is going to take blood from me.

I'm no lawyer, but it's my understanding a cop cannot make you do anything (although many think they can.) He can arrest you, take you to jail, and then have a judge require you to give a blood sample.

Given the choice of breathalizer, urine, or blood, choose blood. It's should show the least amount of intoxicants. Plus this gives your body extra time to rid itself of alcohol.

In Dallas they started a no-refusal program... article details it better than me

12:00 AM CDT on Saturday, May 23, 2009

By STEVE THOMPSON / The Dallas Morning News
stevethompson@dallasnews.com

Get pulled over on suspicion of drunken driving this Memorial Day weekend and you could end up with a court-ordered needle in your arm.

It's been a year since Dallas started its "no refusal" initiative, an effort on holiday weekends to seek warrants to draw blood from those suspected of DWI if they refuse to give it voluntarily. The effort is similar to ones in surrounding cities, including Fort Worth, Arlington, Richardson and Plano.

Dallas police say the program has been a success, and they'd like to see it become a year-round policy.... Link to rest of article

Every State is different and each state enacts new laws every year, you'll need to talk to someone that is up to date with your local laws. In my state, they can only take blood w/o consent if you're involved in a accident where someone dies or is likely to die.

I just love how the results of DUI "joint task force" checkpoints are reported the Monday or Tuesday after the weekend---always along the lines of 250 people stopped, 2 arrests for suspicion of DUI, 1 arrest for expired insurance...they are a crock.

In Missouri if you refuse you lose your license for a year. If the Cop wants an alcohol blood test he needs a warrant.

Personal story: when I was a prosecutor I got a call in the middle of the night. Trooper had arrested a guy in a hit and run that was drunk on his ass. Refuse to blow. I come down to the jail and politely ask the guy to blow so we can avoid the hassle of a warrant. He tells me to fuch off. I prepare and have the on call judge sign a warrant to have blood drawn. I specifically wrote it up to draw arterial blood which is quite painful to have done. :D

I just love how with a DUI, you are guilty until you prove yourself innocent.

I don't have a problem with that. Many drunks are obvious. Borderline drunks need to prove themselves. Don't drive drunk or even tipsy and it will never be a problem. I was stopped at a DUI roadblock. I was driving stone cold sober. I was pissed that I was delayed, but they caught several drunks that day.

I do, as it is a clear violation of our Constitution.

+1

Since my kids became legal driving age, I follow what I preach...don't drink and drive. I'm not saying I won't have a couple of beers, but I watch myself and let them drive me home after a get-together.

Thank goodness they don't drink, at this point; but with my son off to college this August, he'll learn really quick.

I escaped justice too many times when I was younger...hard to believe I'm still alive after some of those times.

You'd be suprised at how low the .08 BAC level is. 2 beers/wines/drinks in a 1 hour period for a normal sized male will put you very close to if not over the limit.

Considering the push to lower it to .08 from .10, I wouldn't be surprised if we see .06 soon, and then "zero tolerance".

In most states you don't have to do the field sobriety tests, but will lose your license for a year (with no restricted license) if you refuse the blood, urine or breath test. You should never ever submit to the field sobriety tests. Although I have passed one before and gotten let go, by the time you're doing that, they've already decided to arrest you and are just having you give their dash cam plenty of evidence against you.

I don't drink and drive but I did see a guy beat a breathalizer, it was the kind that beeps when it has enough of a sample. We were drinking in the bar and he pulls this thing out and blows .11, 20 mins later he blows .13 we are drinking all through this , 20 mins later he blows .09, we were surprised as we thought that he would be .15 - .16. His secret was to take 3-4 deep breaths and completly exhale -empty your lungs totally , take a breath and blow hard but never more than 1/2 of your lung capacity. Blowing hard sloves the machines requirements and the top half of your lungs is the clean air and the bottom will have more of the bad air that sends you to the back of the cops car.

I have won more (if not most) DUI cases by showing the videos from dash cams than not.

I've won some traffic court cases too, as soon as the cop opened his mouth or presented photos. Still, I will never ever again help the state collect evidence against me. I won't refuse a breathlyzer (again). But I won't play these games anymore, while they wait for my BAC to peak or call new recruits to the scene to use me for training, etc. Yes, that has happened.

If that is the case... looks like we might as well install prohibition again as theres no way you could have a beer with dinner out and drive home.


This is a clear case of how a few bad apples ruin it for the rest of us..

Not defending drunk driving, but I'm waiting for the first MERSA/etc. lawsuit to happen because the office wasen't a licenced medical practitioner and didn't use sterile proceedures.

Has anyone ever had an Ignition Interlock Device hooked up to their car?

You blow into a hose connected to a sensor and if there is no alchohol detected your ignition will start? otherwize the sensor prevents the car from being started. Delaware will hook these up to habitual offenders cars to allow them to drive to work etc.