A breath test will measure your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) after a traffic stop. Officers will give out breath tests to see if you’ve exceeded the legal limit of 0.08%. If you have, you could then face drunk driving charges, and the court will presume you were impaired because you had such an elevated BAC level.
That said, you may wonder if you have to submit to the test at all. The officer can certainly ask you to take it after the traffic stop, but do you have to agree? Or can you just refuse to take the test, eliminating any chance that you would have a positive result and incriminate yourself?
Your driver’s license will be suspended
You can refuse the breath test. However, your driver’s license is going to be suspended. For a first offense under Florida law, the suspension is for 12 months. If you refuse a second test, then you will receive a suspension for 18 months.
The reason why this happens is that Florida has implied consent laws stating that every driver agrees to chemical tests when they get their license. In other words, by applying for and accepting your driver’s license, you agreed to take a breath test during a valid traffic stop for impaired driving. You can refuse to do so, but it’s a violation of this previous consent, so the penalties are imposed even if you haven’t been convicted of drunk driving yet. You still lose your license just for refusing the test initially.
Allegations of impaired driving can have a major impact on your future. Take the time to carefully look into all of your legal options and defense tactics at this time.
