U.S. Supreme Court Considers Argument Criminalizing Breath Test Refusals

Posted Friday, April 22, 2016 by Andrew Charles Huff

The U.S. Supreme Court is considering whether several states can criminalize a suspected drunk driver’s refusal of a breath test without a warrant. This decision carries great weight because the argument being made is by getting a driver’s license you have consented to these tests, or “implied consent”.

In arguments before the Court this week, federal government attorneys point out that the Fourth Amendment protects against warrantless breath tests, even if a driver is arrested after exhibiting telltale indicators of drunken driving. States concede that breath tests and blood draws each constitute a “search” of a person’s body and normally, under the Constitution, a search requires a warrant.

The cases from North Dakota and Minnesota involve situations where refusing to take an alcohol test is itself a crime and allows the state to impose punishment identical to a conviction on a DUI/DWI charge.