Stopped for DWI – Do You Blow?

Pulled Over After Drinking ………….. Do you Blow? By Lloyd Nolan.

It’s 11:00 p.m. on a Friday or Saturday night. You and your spouse enjoyed a delightful dinner at your favorite restaurant with drinks, or a bottle of wine. You are on the way home – perhaps driving a few miles over the limit – when you suddenly become aware of flashing lights and realize that you are being pulled over by the police. What do you do?

Bear in mind that, on average, it takes approximately 50 minutes for alcohol to be fully absorbed into the system and the average person would register approximately .02 % percent blood alcohol content after drinking one standard drink, (i.e. a 12 oz beer, 4 oz glass of wine, of 1 ½ oz shot of bourbon, etc.). Alcohol also dissipates at roughly the same rate, so that it takes almost an hour to eliminate the alcohol contained in one drink. Presumably, the average individual consumed only two beers, or two standard drinks, over two hours or less would have a blood alcohol content of 4%, which is less than the .08% limit set forth under the Missouri DWI statute. 577.010 RSMo. Assuming these facts, it seems equally true that the average individual who has consumed only 2 drinks should be able to “safely” take a breath test without blowing over the legal limit. There is even less “risk’ if several hours have passed

FIELD SOBRIETY TESTING.  You are not required by law to submit to any Field Sobriety Testing.  This means if an officer requests that officer requests that you follow his finger, pencil or other stimulus with your eyes as he moves them (Horizontal Nystagmus test) or walk and turn test,  the one – legged stand, or anything else, you are not required to perform them.  If you have been drinking and you are unsure of yourself, it may be advisable to forego any of these tests.  Keep in mind the police officer is not your friend and the officer uses these steps to establish probable cause the you are over the limit and as a basis to request that you submit to a breath test.  The best advice is to CONTACT A LAWYER PRIOR TO ANSWERING QUESTIONS OR TAKING ANY TESTS OR FIELD SOBRIETY TESTING.  YOU HAVE THE RIGHT TO 20 MINUTES TO ATTEMPT CONTACT A LAWYER UNDER MISSOURI LAW if you request to do so.  The Law Enforcement Officer will not tell you this.

Implied Consent …..What’s that? In most states, Missouri included, all licensed drivers impliedly consent to submit to a chemical test (by blood, breath, saliva or urine) for blood alcohol content as a condition of receiving the “privilege” of operating a motor vehicle. Consequently, there are severe consequences to refusing to submit to a law enforcement officer’s request to submit to a chemical test. In Missouri, failure to submit to the chemical (usually breath) test will result in a one year revocation of driving privileges and evidence of the refusal can be used against the driver in a prosecution in a court of law. 577.020, 577.041 Revised Statutes of Missouri. Prior to requesting an individual to submit to a chemical test, a law enforcement officer is required to inform the driver that (s)he is under arrest and the consequences of refusal to submit to testing. 577.041 Revised Statutes of Missouri.

HOWEVER, and an arresting officer will not tell you this, YOU HAVE TWENTY MINUTES TO CONTACT A LAWYER BEFORE YOU SUBMIT TO ANY BREATH TESTING 

For your reference, 577.010 Missouri Revised Statutes defines Driving While Intoxicated
Driving while intoxicated–sentencing restrictions, Jackson County.
577.010. 1. A person commits the crime of “driving while intoxicated” if he operates a motor vehicle while in an intoxicated or drugged condition.
2. Driving while intoxicated is for the first offense, a class B misdemeanor. No person convicted of or pleading guilty to the offense of driving while intoxicated shall be granted a suspended imposition of sentence for such offense, unless such person shall be placed on probation for a minimum of two years.
3. Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection 2 of this section, in a circuit where a DWI court or docket created under section 478.007 or other court-ordered treatment program is available, no person who operated a motor vehicle with fifteen-hundredths of one percent or more by weight of alcohol in such person’s blood shall be granted a suspended imposition of sentence unless the individual participates and successfully completes a program under such DWI court or docket or other court-ordered treatment program.
4. If a person is not granted a suspended imposition of sentence for the reasons described in subsection 3 of this section for such first offense:
(1) If the individual operated the motor vehicle with fifteen-hundredths to twenty-hundredths of one percent by weight of alcohol in such person’s blood, the required term of imprisonment shall be not less than forty-eight hours;
(2) If the individual operated the motor vehicle with greater than twenty-hundredths of one percent by weight of alcohol in such person’s blood, the required term of imprisonment shall be not less than five days.
(L. 1977 S.B. 60, A.L. 1982 S.B. 513, A.L. 2010 H.B. 1695, et al.)
(2004) Section applies to the operation of motorized bicycles. State v. Laplante, 148