Seizure of Blood Evidence in a DUI Case
If you are accused of DUI or BUI resulting in the death or serious bodily injury of another person, Florida’s implied consent laws require that you submit to a blood test of your blood to measure the alcohol or controlled substance level in the blood. See Sections 316.1933(1)(a) and 327.353(1)(a), F.S.
Section 327.353, F.S., provides that a law enforcement officer who has probable cause to believe a vessel operated by a person under the influence of alcoholic beverages, any chemical substance, or any controlled substance has caused the death or serious bodily injury of a human being, must require the person operating the vessel to submit to a blood draw.
The officer may use reasonable force if necessary to require the person to submit to the administration of such blood draw. See Section 327.353(1)(a), F.S. Section 316.1933(1), F.S., explains the blood draw provisions for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) investigations.
The courts in Florida have upheld a similar statute allowing forcible blood draw after a traffic accident with serious bodily injury where there was probable cause to believe that the driver was under the influence of alcohol. See State v. Quintanilla, 276 So. 3d 941 (3rd DCA) (2019), (rev. den., 20 WL 633783) (Feb. 11, 2020).
A blood draw to determine whether a person is under the influence of alcohol, a chemical substance or a controlled substance is a search that has Fourth Amendment ramifications. See State v. Quintanilla, 276 So. 3d 941 (3rd DCA) (2019), (rev. den., 20 WL 633783) (Feb. 11, 2020).
In fact, the United States Constitution and the Florida Constitution guarantee that “[t]he right of the people to be secure in their persons … against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause.” Amend. IV, U.S. Const.; see Art. I, § 12, Fla. Const (“Such an invasion of bodily integrity implicates an individual’s ‘most personal and deep-rooted expectations of privacy.’”) (quoting Winston v. Lee, 470 U.S. 753, 760, 105 S. Ct. 1611, 1616, 84 L. Ed. 2d 662 (1985)). See State v. Quintanilla, 276 So.3d 941, 944-945 (Fla. 3 rd), (2019).
The Florida Supreme Court has explained how the Florida courts interact with Fourth Amendment jurisprudence: “The Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution protects the rights of people to be free of unreasonable searches and seizures.” See Birchfield v. North Dakota, 136 S. Ct. 2160, 2173 (2016). The Fourth Amendment prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures. A blood alcohol test constitutes a “search.”
Judicially recognized exceptions to obtaining a search warrant before a search is conducted include the exigent circumstances exception “applies when the exigencies of the situation make the needs of law enforcement so compelling that a warrantless search is objectively reasonable under the Fourth Amendment.” McNeely, 569 U.S. at 148-49, 133 S. Ct. at 1558 (quoting Kentucky v. King, 563 U.S. 452, 459, 131 S. Ct. 1849, 1856, 179 L. Ed. 2d 865 (2011)).
The general preference is that a judge review the attesting officer’s sworn application and warrant for the requisite probable cause for the seizure and the basis for it.
“‘Probable cause exists where “the facts and circumstances within [an officer’s] knowledge and of which [he] had reasonably trustworthy information [are] sufficient in themselves to warrant a man of reasonable caution in the belief that” an offense has been or is being committed,’ and that evidence bearing on that offense will be found in the place to be searched.” Safford Unified Sch. Dist. # 1 v. Redding, 557 U.S. 364, 370, 129 S. Ct. 2633, 2639, 174 L. Ed. 2d 354 (2009) (alterations in original) (quoting Brinegar v. United States, 338 U.S. 160, 175-76, 69 S. Ct. 1302, 1310-11, 93 L. Ed. 1879 (1949)).
Having found that probable cause for the search exists, the judge should then approve the warrant to be served, executed, and returned by the law enforcement officer. See Sections 933.07, 933.08, and 933.12, F.S.
This article was last updated on Friday, February 6, 2026.
