The consequences of a second refusal are laid out in Florida Statute 316.1939. The statute states in part that any person who has refused to submit to a chemical or physical test of his or her breath, blood, or urine, and whose privilege was previously suspended for a prior refusal to submit to a lawful test of his or her breath, urine, or blood, and
(a) whose arresting officer had probable cause to believe they were DUI; and
(b) who was placed under lawful arrest; and
(c) who was informed that, if he or she refused to submit to such test, his or her privilege to operate a motor vehicle would be suspended for a period of 1 year or, in the case of a second or subsequent refusal, for a period of 18 months; and
(d) who was informed that a refusal to submit to a lawful test of his or her breath, blood or urine, if his or her privilege has been previously suspended for a prior refusal to submit to a lawful test of his or her breath, blood or urine, is a misdemeanor; and
(e) who, after being so informed refuses to submit to such test…..commits a misdemeanor of the first degree.
So, what all this language is saying is that if you get pulled over for dui, and you have previously refused a breath test, and they ask you to take a breath test and you refuse, not only will they suspend your license for 18 months but they could charge you with a separate criminal charge of Refusal to submit to a chemical test. This criminal charge is a first degree misdemeanor which is punishable by up to 1 year in jail.
One of the other issues is that if you decide that you want to go to trial, most judges will make you go to trial on the refusal charge first before the DUI charge and if you get convicted they will try to force you into a plea on the DUI.
As you can see, this second refusal has serious consequences. If you find yourself in this position you should hire a Palm Beach County Traffic attorney to defend you in court.
If you would like more information about my firm you can visit us at www.dontpaythatticket.com or call us directly at 561-989-9999.
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