Walk It Through: The Breath Test
A roadside device, a test at the station, a blood draw, and the morning in front of a magistrate.
Near closing time, a driver drifts over the center line and is pulled over. The officer smells alcohol and brings out a roadside breath device.
Two things a person in this spot might do. Picking one shows what the law says about it.
One arrest on a first offense. The license revocation hearing, a crash with injuries, a child in the car and a second conviction are not worked through here.
A practice walkthrough, not a prediction of how any real one will go. Legal information, not legal advice.
Words this turns on
Terms with a legal meaning that is narrower than the everyday one. Each links to the definition and the authority behind it.
- Citation in lieu of arrestA citation an officer may issue instead of arresting, for a misdemeanor not involving injury committed in the officer's presence, when the person will likely appear.
- Family or household memberSpouses and former spouses, people who live or lived together, intimate or dating partners, people with a child in common, and a list of relatives by blood and marriage.
- Secured bondBail backed by cash or property. In all misdemeanors, cash bail may not exceed three times the maximum fine for the offense.
- Driving in an impaired stateDriving under the influence of alcohol, a controlled substance or another drug, or with an alcohol concentration in the blood of eight hundredths of one percent or more, by weight.
- Implied consentThe rule that anyone who drives in the state is considered to have consented to a preliminary breath analysis and a secondary chemical test of blood or breath.
- Preliminary breath analysisA roadside breath test an officer may require with reason to believe a person has been driving under the influence. Its result is used only to decide whether to arrest.
- Secondary chemical testThe breath or blood test given after an arrest. A person who refuses is not given it, after written and verbal warnings, and the refusal becomes final after 15 minutes.