No. Falure to blow in Kentucky is an automatic aggravated DUI.
Listen- the only time you don't blow in Kentucky is if your blood alcohol level is over 1.6.
That is very, very drunk, and any lawyer would know that.
And if you weren't very, very drunk, then you should have blown.
If your BAC is 0.8-1.6, you get a DUI. Higher than that is an aggravated DUI, which is what you get charged with when you refuse to blow.
So sue your lawyer and bend over and grab your ankles and pray for a plea.
If you did not blow and you were arrested, you were automatically charged with aggravated DUI.
That's how they get you to blow.
This is not optional. By not blowing, you automatically are charged with this, whether you were a choir boy or Adolf Hitler.
Now- you may not be convicted of this becuase of your prior record, but believe me, you're charged with it.
It is against the law to not blow in Kentucky. It is a crime.
Even if they end up not charging you with a DUI, you didn't blow, so it's an automatic license suspension.
Last edited by Dom Heffner; 02-26-2010 at 06:26 PM.
If you were arraigned, you should have some paperwork saying what you were charged with someplace.
I'd look at my outgoing calls and any paperwork I might have from the incident before I queried a bunch of baseball loving guys on what the law is.
Fact is by you not doing that (or realizing it??) makes me ponder if you still might have a slight buzz happening.
This thread has been extremely helpful. Does anyone know where I could get a great price on a lawyer for the sake of plea bargaining? At the moment, that's what I'm leaning toward.
It's just odd to me that a lawyer would tell you to not take a breathlyzer without knowing the facts.
He essentially just guaranteed you an aggravated DUI charge over a DUI.
Just remember- if you are really drunk- like fall down, crazy- refuse the breathlyzer. At this point you know you're up for aggravated, so make them prove it. If you arent, though, then take it.
I also find it odd they didn't give you a field test. Usually that provides them with probable cause. They need that, because a good DUI lawyer will try and get your case thrown out under that premise. To just see you swerve or cross a yellow line, isn't enough, so they normally want you to fail a field test, then they can ask you, with cause, to take a breathlyzer test. These guys aren't stupid (well, they can be, but you know what I mean...)....
In your case you were just sitting at a light asleep, so not sure how much cause is there, other than the alcohol smell. That may be enough, but that field test is a good way to have cause for you to blow....
Last edited by Dom Heffner; 02-26-2010 at 06:54 PM.
Board Moderators may, at their discretion and judgment, delete and/or edit any messages that violate any of the following guidelines: 1. Explicit references to alleged illegal or unlawful acts. 2. Graphic sexual descriptions. 3. Racial or ethnic slurs. 4. Use of edgy language (including masked profanity). 5. Direct personal attacks, flames, fights, trolling, baiting, name-calling, general nuisance, excessive player criticism or anything along those lines. 6. Posting spam. 7. Each person may have only one user account. It is fine to be critical here - that's what this board is for. But let's not beat a subject or a player to death, please. |