DUI Refusal in Pinellas County

If you refused a breath, blood, or urine test after a DUI arrest, you are not alone. Across the state, approximately 35% of drivers refuse to submit. This article discusses the consequences of refusing.

Under Section 316.1932(1)(a)1.a., F.S., anyone who accepts the privilege of operating a motor vehicle in the State of Florida is deemed to have given consent to submit to a lawfully requested and approved test of the alcohol content of their blood, breath, or urine.

So what happens if you refuse to submit to a breath, blood, or urine test after a DUI arrest in Pinellas County, FL? The first issue is whether the request is lawful. A legal request is:

• incidental to a lawful arrest; and
• administered at the request of a law enforcement officer who has a reasonable belief that the driver was DUI.

If the request is legal and you refuse, two consequences are triggered.

• First, the refusal triggers an “on-the-spot” administrative suspension by the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicle (DHSMV) for twelve (12) months for a first refusal or eighteen (18) months for a second or subsequent refusal as required by Section 322.2615(1)(b)1.a. The only way to contest the administrative suspension is to demand a formal review hearing within ten (10) days of the arrest.
• Second, the prosecutor can use the refusal at trial to argue that you were conscious of your guilt

For a second refusal, you can be charged with a separate crime under Fla. Stat. § 316.1939. Refusing to submit to a chemical test for a second time is a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months in jail and a $1,000 fine.

Lawyer for DUI Refusal in Pinellas County, FL

If you were charged with a DUI involving a refusal to submit to a breath, blood, or urine test, contact an experienced criminal defense attorney at Sammis Law Firm.

We can help you demand a formal review hearing at the DHSMV to contest the 12-18 month administrative suspension. After we demand the formal review hearing, we can also help you secure a 42-day permit to continue driving to work, school, and church.

In addition to helping challenge the administrative suspension, we can fight the DUI charge in court. We will attend your pre-trial conferences, obtain all the discovery (police reports and videos), file motions to suppress or exclude evidence, prepare the case for trial, and negotiate a pretrial resolution (hopefully for a reduced charge).

If this is your second refusal, we can also represent you on the separate crime charge for a second DUI refusal violating Fla. Stat. § 316.1939.

Sammis Law Firm has offices in Clearwater, FL, near the CJC Courthouse. Visit us at 14010 Roosevelt Blvd Suite 701, Clearwater, FL 33762-3820.

Don’t face the judge alone.

Call 727-210-7004.

Administrative Driver License Suspension for Refusing

Under Section 316.1932, F.S., if you drive in Florida, the law deems you have given consent to submit to a lawfully requested approved chemical test. Depending on the circumstances, the officer investigating the DUI can request that you submit to a breath, urine, or blood test.

What type of chemical test can the officer request?

• The request for breath must be made after a DUI arrest if the officer suspects alcohol impairment.
• The request for urine must be made after a DUI arrest if the officer suspects drug impairment.
• The request for blood can be made before or after a DUI arrest under either of the following circumstances:
  • the officer has probable cause that your DUI caused or contributed to a crash causing death or serious bodily injury; or
  • the officer has probable cause of DUI and you appear at a hospital or medical facility under circumstances that make the breath or urine test impossible or impractical.

Before your failure to submit can be deemed a “refusal,” you must be notified that refusal to submit to a lawful breath test will result in an administrative suspension of your driving privilege for one year for a first refusal or 18 months for a second or subsequent refusal. See 316.1932(1)(a)1.a., F.S.

The administrative driving privilege suspension is separate from any revocation the court must impose if you are convicted of DUI. See Section 322.28, F.S. In other words, you might successfully contest the administrative suspension but still get a court-ordered revocation if convicted of DUI. On the other hand, you might be unsuccessful in contesting the administrative suspension but avoid the court-ordered revocation because the DUI is dropped or reduced to a less serious offense, such as reckless driving.

As required by Section 322.2615, F.S., if you refuse to submit to a lawful breath test, a law enforcement officer must do the following:

• seize your driver’s license;
• issue a 10-day temporary permit (if you are otherwise eligible to drive); and
• provide you with a notice of suspension included in the uniform DUI citation.

Your administrative suspension period begins on the date the notice of suspension is issued, which is usually the same day as the DUI arrest. See Section 322.2615(1)(b)2., F.S. Even if you were not arrested for DUI or issued a uniform DUI citation, the DHSMV might mail you a notice of the administrative suspension.

Read more about DUI defense attorneys in Pinellas County, FL.

Penalties for a Second Refusal in Pinellas County, FL

Under s. 316.1939, F.S., before a person can be convicted of a first-degree misdemeanor for a second or subsequent refusal to submit to lawful testing, the state must prove that the person was notified of their implied consent warnings.

A person who refuses to submit to a lawful breath test and whose driver’s license has previously been suspended for failure to submit to a lawful test of his or her breath, urine, or blood commits a first-degree misdemeanor punishable by up to 12 months in jail and a $1,000 fine. 

Penalties for a second or subsequent refusal also apply to a person previously fined under s. 321.35215, F.S., for refusing to submit to a blood, breath, or urine test after being lawfully arrested for an alleged boating violation under the influence. See Section 327.35215. 

In Pinellas County, FL, the prosecutor typically wants jail time in DUI cases with the additional charge of a second refusal to submit. In many cases, the person might face mandatory jail time if their DUI charge is a second within five (5) years of a prior conviction, a third within ten (10) years of a prior, or a fourth in their lifetime.

Additional Resources

Chart of Penalties in Pinellas – Find a chart listing the mandatory minimum criminal penalties imposed at sentencing in a DUI case in Pinellas County, FL. The chart lists the type of DUI charge (first, second outside five years, second within five years, third outside ten years, third within ten years, or fourth lifetime DUI), the total amount of fines and costs, probation period, driver’s license revocation period, jail time, vehicle impound, and other mandatory penalties.

Penalties for a Second DUI Refusal – Read more about the history of Fla. Stat. § 316.1939, enacted in 2002. That statute creates a separate crime for refusing to submit to a lawfully requested blood, breath, or urine test if your driving privileges were previously suspended for a refusal. The crime is punishable by up to a $1,000 fine and 12 months in the county jail, even if you are never convicted of the underlying DUI. The purpose of the law was to discourage a person from avoiding a DUI conviction by repeatedly refusing to take a breath test after each DUI arrest.

This article was last updated on Monday, July 22, 2024.