DUI Breath Test

DUI Breath Test

Can you Refuse a DUI Breath Test?

When you get behind the wheel after you have had a few drinks, your driving might be impaired. If you get pulled over by the police and are asked to perform a variety of field sobriety tests, you might want to panic. Do you have to submit to all of the tests? You didn’t think you had that much to drink, can you refuse to take a dui breath test because you know if should be under the legal limit, but are afraid the machine is malfunctioning? As a suspect in an Orlando DUI case, you have certain rights during your case, however, refusing a breath test can bring on additional penalties to you.

Should you take a DUI Breath Test?

  • Sometimes people panic and refuse to take a breathalyzer test. However, when you refuse the DUI Breath test, police assume it is because you are drunk and will blow and have results showing well over the legal limit. This might not be the case at all, but since you didn’t blow, the police will be able to tack on lots of other charges in your case.
  • Most lawyers in Orlando will advise you to take the breathalyzer test and avoid the charges thata re associated with refusing the test initially. Not only will there be more charges, but there will be more fines and fees associated with not taking the test when you are first asked. It is easier to get charges dismissed when you have taken the breathalyzer test, because there are so many ways that the test can be improperly conducted. If it is proven that the test was illegally gotten or that the results were skewed, then your case can be tossed out, the DUI will not be on your record and you will have much less penalties and fines to deal with in the future.

dui breath test

Are Breathalyzer Machines Calibrated Properly?

The breathalyzer machine needs to be properly calibrated every so often in order to make sure it reads the results properly. If the machine does not have paperwork to prove it was recently calibrated, the test results can be tossed out. Many Orlando DUI cases are dismissed because the machine was not properly cared for and the results might not have been accurate when it was administered. It is easier for you to take the test and then have the results thrown out than it is for you to refuse the test and then prove you weren’t under the influence.

DUI Breath Test Thrown out of Court?

Another way that the breathalyzer test can be thrown out of court is by how it was gotten. Police are required to observe a suspect for at least twenty minutes before they can ask a person to submit to a breath test. When they get the test before that amount of time, it is illegally gotten and the test results can be thrown out. When there aren’t any tests results in a DUI case, then the charges are dismissed and then you don’t have a record to worry about or any fees associated with a DUI breath test.