Required

Test Refusal at Baltimore DUI Stops

If you are pulled over and suspected of driving under the influence the following is important information you should know regarding breath tests in the state of Maryland. Read on to learn about your rights during a DUI stop or call today and schedule a free consultation.

There are two breath tests that are commonly administered to people in DUI cases. The first is what you commonly hear as a PBT, which is a breath test that the officer carries with them. It is a little plastic device which kind of looks like a plastic tube, and the officer will have you blow into it while on the side of the road. This test you do not have to do and it is not necessarily admissible in court.

The other type of breath test is when you are stopped and brought back to either a barrack or a station by a local officer. This test will take place inside that barrack or station on the Intoxilyzer by a chemist who is certified to operate that machine. Refusing this test, unlike the PBT, carries penalties such as an automatic license suspension.

What To Do After Being Stopped By Police

When you are pulled over by law enforcement, the first thing you should do is follow the officer’s instructions and give them your license, registration, and insurance information. If they ask you to get out of the car, you must comply. However, if they ask you to take either a field sobriety test or a breath test it is likely in your best interest to respectfully decline.

If they take you to the station you will be tested using an Intoxilyzer, which if you refuse comes with a penalty on your license and potentially an interlock system on your car. With this test refusing is more circumstantial as if you take it you are potentially providing evidence against yourself, but if you refuse, you are going to lose your license for a period of time and potentially face other penalties as well.

There are two breath tests that are commonly administered to people in DUI cases. The first is what you commonly hear as a PBT, which is a breath test that the officer carries with them. It is a little plastic device which kind of looks like a plastic tube, and the officer will have you blow into it while on the side of the road. This test you do not have to do and it is not necessarily admissible in court.

The other type of breath test is when you are stopped and brought back to either a barrack or a station by a local officer. This test will take place inside that barrack or station on the Intoxilyzer by a chemist who is certified to operate that machine. Refusing this test, unlike the PBT, carries penalties such as an automatic license suspension.

Field Sobriety Tests

If you are stopped and suspected of driving under the influence in Baltimore, you will likely be asked to step out of your vehicle and submit to a field sobriety test and potentially a preliminary breath test as well.

Field sobriety tests are used simply so that the officer can look for indicators of impairment such as loss of balance, dilated pupils, or loss of focus. One example of a field sobriety test is the horizontal gaze test where an officer will slowly move a pen back and forth and ask you to follow it with your eyes. While the officer administers the horizontal gaze test they are looking for bouncing or jerking of the eyes as that can be a sign of impairment.

Two other examples of common field sobriety tests are the one-leg-test and the walk-and-turn test, which are both approved by the National Transportation Board, and are supposed to help law enforcement officials find other indicators of impairment.

The problem with all of these field sobriety tests, however, is that failing a test doesn’t necessarily mean you are impaired. For this reason lawyers often advise clients to respectfully decline field sobriety tests, as you are not required to take one and refusing a field sobriety test carries no penalties.

With regards to preliminary breath tests, this test is also not mandatory and in many cases will only hurt your situation more than it will help.

Refusing a Breath Test in Maryland

If you have ever flipped over your Maryland driver’s license and looked at the back right at the very top it says, “by driving in Maryland you comply to chemical testing for intoxicants if it is required by law” and it also goes on to say, “there is a longer license suspension from a refusal to be tested.” This means that if you are at a police station and law enforcement is attempting to administer a test you either have to do it, or face an automatic license suspension.

As soon as your refuse the test your license is either going to be suspended for 270 days or you can install that ignition interlock in your vehicle. An ignition interlock is a miniature version of the system and it has a wire that goes right into your starter. In order to start the car you have to blow into the machine and pass the exam. If you pass it starts the car. As you are driving, the device may require you to submit intermittent breath samples to be analyzed, depending on the length of the drive. If you have the ignition interlock put in your vehicle it is marked on your license. Your license is restricted to the car that has interlock in it, and you can only drive that vehicle. There are very few exceptions, but that is general truth and it is for one full year. For this reason, refusing a breath test is something that really depends on the situation.

Why Refuse if You Are Innocent?

If you are innocent and you give law enforcement nothing then they really have no case to make against you, as you can’t prove a case without evidence.

On the other side of that, if you do happen to fail a field sobriety test or preliminary breath test then you are almost helping make the case against you, even though you were within your legal rights to refuse. For this reason, submitting to either a field sobriety test or a preliminary breath test is often a lose-lose situation and therefore not a good idea.