dwi

In New York, DWI means “driving while intoxicated,” and it’s the legal term for driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol. If you are charged with DWI, it probably means that you failed a chemical DWI test, and you’ll need the help of a good Long Island DWI lawyer.

But what happens if you refuse to take a chemical DWI test – a blood, breathalyzer, or urine test – when a police officer requests it? Keep reading, because “refusal to test” can get you in serious legal trouble, and if that happens, you’ll also need a good DWI lawyer’s help.

When a police officer in New York suspects that a driver is impaired by drugs or alcohol, the driver may be asked to submit to a field sobriety test, which is often followed by a pre-arrest “portable breath test” (or PBT).

How Do “Implied Consent” Laws Work In New York?

New York legally requires drivers to submit to a chemical DWI test if they have been placed under arrest.

This state’s implied consent laws mean that:

1. Simply by driving in the State of New York, you’ve already implied your consent to chemical DWI testing.

2. If a New York police officer requests it, you must submit to chemical DWI testing after being placed under arrest for a drug or alcohol-related offense.

What Should You Know About Pre-Arrest “Portable” Breath Tests?

If a police officer has probable cause to believe that a motorist is intoxicated, the officer may ask the driver to submit to a portable breath test (PBT) with a handheld breathalyzer device that measures the driver’s blood alcohol content (BAC) level. The “legal limit” is a BAC level of 0.08 percent.

PBT test results are considered less reliable than the results of chemical tests at a police station using more sophisticated devices, and PBT results generally cannot be introduced as evidence at a trial, but a PBT test result can give a police officer probable cause to arrest the driver for DWI. A driver who refuses to take a roadside PBT test prior to being arrested can face consequences.

What If You Refuse To Test After A DWI Arrest?

After a driving while intoxicated arrest, a driver may be asked to test on a more sophisticated breathalyzer device – or to provide a blood or urine sample – at a police station. The results will be admissible as evidence in a DWI prosecution, and the penalty for refusing is more severe.

Regardless of whether you are convicted of driving while intoxicated, refusal to test after being arrested can trigger a one-year driver’s license suspension and a fine of $500. The fine is $750 if you’ve refused testing or if you’ve been convicted of DWI within the last five years.

Additionally, if you refuse to submit to a chemical DWI test after being arrested, your refusal can be used as evidence against you in a criminal DWI prosecution. The prosecutor can say that you knew you were guilty, and that’s why you refused to provide evidence of your guilt by testing.

Can You Be Forced To Give A Breath Or Blood Sample?

In most situations, you cannot be forced to take a chemical DWI test. However, if you were involved in an accident, and if someone was killed or seriously injured, the police can obtain an immediate court order which allows them to use force to take a sample of your blood for testing.

If you are charged with DWI and/or with refusal to test in New York – either before or after you were arrested, you must be represented by a Long Island DWI lawyer who will challenge the results of a breathalyzer exam or any other evidence the state offers against you.

You must take a driving while intoxicated charge seriously. Do not plead guilty and do not try to act as your own lawyer. Pleading guilty may look tempting as an expedient way to handle a DWI charge, but a guilty plea to driving while intoxicated charge impacts your life for years to come.

What Should You Know About Breathalyzers?

Breathalyzer devices measure the alcohol molecules in your breath and then determine the amount of alcohol in your bloodstream based on the alcohol in your breath. Breathalyzers, however, are often inaccurate, and criminal defense attorneys often successfully challenge the test results.

Substances that breathalyzer devices “read” as alcohol are in foods, beverages, medicines, toothpastes, breath fresheners, and mouthwashes. Even your cologne or perfume could be mistaken for alcohol by a breathalyzer device.

Several medical conditions can also distort a breathalyzer test result including gastrointestinal reflux disease, acid reflux, and heartburn.

Moreover, breathalyzers frequently malfunction. The devices must be routinely maintained and calibrated. Officers who conduct breathalyzer examinations must be trained to use the devices properly and to follow established guidelines for breathalyzer tests.

What Are The Penalties For DWI Convictions?

DWI is usually a misdemeanor in New York. A first DWI conviction is punishable with up to a year in jail and/or a fine of $500 to $1,000, along with a three-year probation period and a six-month driver’s license revocation. There’s also a surcharge and a fee for aid to crime victims.

As you might imagine, subsequent convictions for driving while intoxicated in New York will result in increasingly harsher penalties. And while the legal penalties are considerable, you should also consider the extra-legal repercussions of a DWI conviction:

1. Your automobile insurance rates will increase.

2. If you are employed as a driver, or if driving is essential to your job, you may have trouble keeping or finding employment.

3. If you hold a professional license, a DWI conviction will probably lead to disciplinary action by your professional licensing board.

What’s The Best Strategy For Drivers In New York?

There is only one sure way to avoid DWI trouble. Don’t drink and drive. If you plan to drink away from home, take Uber or Lyft, call a taxi or a limo, arrange for a designated driver, get a room for the night, or arrange to sleep on a friend’s spare bed or sofa.

If you are arrested and charged with driving while intoxicated, a New York DWI attorney will protect your rights, guide you through the legal process, fight for the justice you need, and bring your case to its best possible outcome.

Winters in New York can be harsh, but when spring rolls around, most people on Long Island will want to enjoy swimming, water-skiing, sailing, and other water-based recreations. It can be great fun – until and unless someone operating a boat becomes intoxicated.

Drugs and alcohol can cause blurred vision, impaired balance, impaired judgment, poor coordination, and slower reaction times. Alcohol is a leading cause of boating accidents, injuries, and fatalities. An impaired boater can be extremely dangerous.

If you are accused of boating while intoxicated, you may not be guilty, but you must have a Long Island DWI lawyer’s help.

WHAT CONSTITUTES BOATING WHILE INTOXICATED?

Here in New York, drinking while you operate a boat is illegal just like drinking when you drive a car. When a boat operator’s blood alcohol content (BAC) level measures 0.08 percent or more, the operator may be charged with Boating While Intoxicated.

Several crimes in New York are related to BWI:

1. Boating while ability-impaired by alcohol or “alcohol-BWAI.” An alcohol-BWAI charge may be filed if you are boating while impaired in any way by alcohol.

2. Boating while ability-impaired by drugs or “drug-BWAI.” A drug-BWAI charge may be filed if you are boating while impaired in any way by drugs.

WHAT ABOUT COMMERCIAL AND UNDERAGE BOAT OPERATORS?

If you are operating a boat commercially in New York waters, a BAC measurement of 0.04 percent will trigger a BWI charge.

If you are under 21 years old, “zero tolerance” for alcohol is the rule in New York, and you may be charged with “underage BWI” for operating a boat with a BAC level as low as 0.02 percent.

WHAT ARE THE PENALTIES FOR ALCOHOL-BWAI?

Generally speaking, the penalties for a BWI conviction or a BWAI conviction will depend on the offender’s prior BWI, BWAI, DWI (Driving While Intoxicated) and DWAI (Driving While Ability-Impaired) convictions, if any. These are the penalties for alcohol-BWAI:

1. A first alcohol-BWAI offense is considered a violation. A first conviction is punishable with a fine of up to $500 and up to fifteen days in jail.

2. A second alcohol-BWAI offense in five years is a misdemeanor. A second conviction within five years is punishable with a fine of up to $750 and up to thirty days in jail.

3. A third alcohol-BWAI offense within ten years is also a misdemeanor. A third conviction within ten years is punishable with a fine of up to $1,500 and up to 180 days in jail.

All convicted alcohol-BWAI offenders lose their privilege to operate a boat for at least six months.

WHAT ARE THE PENALTIES FOR DRUG-BWAI AND FOR BWI?

Convictions for BWI and for drug-DWAI lead to the same penalties:

1. A first drug-BWAI or BWI offense is a misdemeanor. A first conviction is punishable with a fine of up to $1,000 and up to one year in jail.

2. A second drug-BWAI or BWI offense within ten years is a Class E felony. A second conviction within ten years is punishable with a fine of up to $5,000 and up to four years in a New York prison.

3. A third drug-BWAI or BWI offense within ten years is a Class D felony. A third conviction within ten years is punishable with a fine of up to $10,000 and up to seven years in a New York prison.

FOR HOW LONG CAN YOUR RIGHT TO OPERATE A BOAT BE SUSPENDED?

Boaters convicted of a first-offense drug-BWAI or BWI will lose their privilege to operate a boat for one year. If a boater is convicted a second time of drug-BWAI or BWI within ten years, the privilege to operate a boat is suspended for two years.

If you are operating a boat while intoxicated and you cause an accident and/or injuries, you will face additional charges and harsher penalties.

All convicted Boating While Intoxicated offenders must also complete eight hours of boating safety classes.

HOW CAN A DWI LAW FIRM IN NY HELP?

If you are charged with any alcohol-related crime on Long Island or anywhere in the New York City area, you must be advised and represented by an experienced Long Island DWI attorney.

If law enforcement officers violated your legal rights, or if there are questions about the reliability of the breathalyzer results, a good DWI lawyer may be able to have the charge against you dismissed or reduced to a lesser charge.

Of course, if you are innocent, you should reject any plea bargain offer and insist on a trial by jury. If your case goes to trial, your criminal defense attorney will advocate aggressively on your behalf and will explain to the jurors why they should find you not guilty.

WHAT ARE THE STATISTICS ON BOATING ACCIDENTS AND ALCOHOL?

The Coast Guard tells us that in 2015, across the United States, 4,158 recreational boating accidents led to 626 fatalities, 2,613 other serious injuries, and about $42 million dollars in property damages.

In 2016, fifty percent of the boating fatalities in New York – eleven of twenty-two – were linked to alcohol or drugs.

Recreational boating in the state of New York is a $2 billion industry enjoyed by thousands of our state’s residents and visitors alike. But with nearly 450,000 powerboats registered in this state, there are plenty of opportunities for serious accidents and injuries.

WHAT SAFETY PRECAUTIONS SHOULD BOATERS TAKE?

This spring and summer, and whenever you enjoy the waters around New York City and Long Island, do not forget to take these important safety precautions:

1. Check a reliable weather forecast before you depart.
2. Wear a life jacket and make sure that everyone aboard wears one too.
3. Have flares, a powerful and dependable flashlight, a fire extinguisher, and a marine radio.
4. Do not drink alcohol or use any drugs before you operate a boat or any other watercraft.

WHAT ELSE IS IMPORTANT TO KNOW ABOUT BOATING AND BWI?

Do not even think about operating a boat if you have not completed a boating safety course. If you are the boat owner or operator, you must be proactive about safe boating.

Still, if you’re charged with BWI in New York because you made a bad decision about drinking – or if you’re innocent and wrongly accused – reach out as quickly as you can to an experienced DWI attorney for the legal help you will need. Your future and your freedom could depend on it.

If you are stopped in traffic by the police for suspicion of driving while intoxicated (DWI), you may be asked to blow into a breathalyzer device to determine your blood alcohol content (BAC) level. If your BAC level measures at or above 0.08 percent, you may be charged with DWI.

Are breathalyzer tests reliable? Why do breathalyzers so frequently return inaccurate readings? Can you avoid a DWI conviction – even after you fail a breathalyzer exam? And how can a Long Island DWI attorney help you if you are charged with DWI on the basis of a bad breathalyzer test result?

HOW ARE BREATHALYZER DEVICES SUPPOSED TO WORK?

Some people still do not understand that breathalyzer devices are often inaccurate, and that most experts believe that breathalyzer tests are generally unreliable.

Breathalyzers are supposed to calculate the quantity or percentage of alcohol molecules in your breath. Alcohol is absorbed into the bloodstream with no chemical change, so when that blood moves through your lungs, some of that alcohol transfers into your breath and is exhaled.

A breathalyzer supposedly measures the percentage of alcohol molecules in your breath and then supposedly determines how much alcohol is in your bloodstream based on the percentage of alcohol in your breath.

WHY ARE BREATHALYZER RESULTS SO FREQUENTLY INACCURATE?

However, breathalyzer tests can be wrong for a variety of reasons. For example, alcohol and other substances that breathalyzers “read” as alcohol are found in a number of beverages, medicines, foods, mouthwashes, toothpaste, and breath fresheners.

Breathalyzers also frequently malfunction. Breathalyzers must be regularly calibrated and maintained. When a breathalyzer is not properly calibrated and maintained at the correct settings, false readings are likely.

Even when they function properly, breathalyzers may pick up radio frequency interference (RFI). RFI is present whenever law enforcement officers are using their radios.

Officers who administer breathalyzer tests must be trained to use breathalyzers properly and to conduct breath tests according to established guidelines.

FOR WHAT OTHER REASONS ARE BREATHALYZER RESULTS INACCURATE?

1. Administering the breathalyzer test too quickly after someone has been drinking will yield an inaccurate result on the high side. That’s because immediately after drinking, there is still residual alcohol in the mouth and throat.

If you have just walked out of a bar or a nightclub after drinking, a breathalyzer measurement will be inaccurate on the high side. Police officers are supposed to wait at least fifteen minutes before testing a driver if DWI is suspected.

2. Administering the breathalyzer test while the BAC level is still rising may yield an inaccurate result on the low side. For most people, it takes one to three hours for alcohol to be absorbed completely into the bloodstream.

If a breath test is administered while the BAC level is rising, it will not give an accurate assessment of a driver’s actual level of intoxication.

3. Several medical conditions can skew a breathalyzer result including acid reflux, gastrointestinal reflux disease, and heartburn. These conditions may create acid in the mouth, stomach, or esophagus, which raises the BAC level and leads to an inaccurate measurement.

4. Contamination from environmental factors could also affect the result of a breath test. Chemical traces from chemicals used to clean the device or alcohol traces from individuals who previously used the device can lead to an inaccurate BAC measurement.

WHAT’S YOUR TOP PRIORITY IF YOU ARE CHARGED WITH DWI?

If you are placed under arrest and charged with DWI anywhere on Long Island or in New York City because of a breathalyzer test result, put your case in the hands of an experienced DWI lawyer as quickly as possible.

Are you required to “blow” into a breathalyzer if a police officer asks you to? What are your rights if you’re suspected of DWI in the state of New York?

If a police officer has probable cause to believe that a motorist is driving while intoxicated, New York’s “implied consent” law requires the driver to submit to chemical testing – a blood, urine, saliva, or breathalyzer test – if requested.

PRECISELY WHAT IS “IMPLIED” CONSENT?

“Implied consent” is the “implied” agreement that every driver makes when he or she gets behind the wheel in New York. In other words, simply by driving, the law presumes that your consent to a DWI test is implied.

If you refuse to take a chemical test after you have been arrested for DWI in New York, whether or not you are eventually convicted of DWI, your driver’s license may be suspended for one year, and you may be fined $500.

A chemical DWI test is usually conducted after a DWI arrest, but state law also requires drivers in New York to take a breathalyzer test even before being placed under arrest – if a police officer requests it.

If an officer has probable cause to believe that you are driving while intoxicated, he may ask you to blow into a portable breathalyzer device in order to obtain evidence against you. The refusal to take this test – prior to being arrested – is considered an infraction under New York law.

CAN THE POLICE “FORCIBLY” TEST YOU FOR DWI?

In most circumstances, if you refuse to test, the police won’t make you. However, if you’re driving in an accident where someone is killed or seriously injured, refusal may not be an option. The police can get a court order that lets them forcibly take a blood sample for testing.

If you are charged with DWI in New York, you must obtain – immediately – the advice and representation of a qualified DWI lawyer who may challenge the results of a breathalyzer test or any other evidence the state presents against you.

WHAT’S THE BEST WAY TO AVOID DWI TROUBLE?

As you probably suspect, there is one sure way to avoid being charged with DWI. It’s the same advice that you’ve heard so many times before: Don’t Drink and Drive.

Rides for hire aren’t cheap, but they cost a lot less than a ride to the jail, the emergency room, or the morgue. Limos, taxicabs, and rideshare services like Lyft and Uber are available throughout Long Island and New York City twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year.

Even sleeping on a friend’s sofa or renting a room for the night is better than facing a DWI charge. You must do whatever it takes to avoid a DWI conviction.

Don’t let a DWI charge – or a conviction for driving while intoxicated – take your freedom or ruin your future. When you need a criminal defense lawyer’s help, get that help immediately. It’s your right.

If you’re convicted of DWAI or DWI in the state of New York, will you be allowed to have a “conditional” driver’s license? The answer is, “it depends.”

A DWAI or DWI conviction in New York suspends your driving privilege, but a conditional license with limited driving permission is available in some cases for some convicted offenders.

WHAT CONSTITUTES DWAI? WHAT CONSTITUTES DWI?

First, let’s distinguish between DWAI – driving while ability-impaired – and DWI, which is driving while intoxicated.

DWI is the more serious offense (a misdemeanor), and many first-time DWI offenders are allowed to plead guilty to DWAI (a traffic infraction), and in return, a DWI defense lawyer can have the charge is dropped.

A New York motorist may be charged with DWAI if that driver’s blood alcohol content (BAC) level is between 0.05 percent and 0.07 percent.

The “legal limit” for DWI in New York is 0.08 percent, so DWAI isn’t a “crime.”

WHAT’S THE PENALTY FOR DWAI?

Still, DWAI is a traffic infraction punishable upon conviction with up to 15 days in jail, a fine of up to $500, and a 90-day driver’s license suspension.

If it’s a second DWAI conviction within five years of the first, the driver’s license suspension is for six months.

Convicted DWAI offenders also must complete New York’s Impaired Driver Program.

When a driver’s BAC level measures at or above 0.08 percent, the charge is DWI.

WHAT IS THE PENALTY FOR DWI?

A first-offense misdemeanor DWI conviction in New York is punishable by up to a year in jail, a fine of up to $1,000, and a six-month driver’s license suspension.

And just like convicted DWAI offenders, convicted DWI offenders must complete the state’s Impaired Driver Program.

A first DWI offense in this state is in most cases a misdemeanor, but a second New York driving while intoxicated charge within ten years will be filed as a felony charge.

WHAT IS REQUIRED TO OBTAIN A CONDITIONAL DRIVER’S LICENSE?

Drivers who need a conditional, restricted driver’s license after a DWI or DWAI conviction must complete the state’s Impaired Driver Program (IDP).

And even if you don’t need a temporary conditional license, IDP must be completed before a driver can regain full driving privileges at the end of a DWI or DWAI sentence.

If you’re charged with DWAI or DWI anywhere on Long Island or in New York City, contact an experienced Long Island DWI lawyer at once, because you are going to need serious legal help.

IDP is a sixteen-hour program scheduled over seven weeks. Depending on a driver’s history and pending charges, some drivers will qualify for a conditional license upon completing IDP.

WHAT DOES A CONDITIONAL DRIVER’S LICENSE ALLOW?

When you are granted a conditional driver’s license in New York during a license suspension period that’s part of a DWI or DWAI sentence, you will be allowed to drive only:

1. to and from work – and while working if your job duties require driving

2. to and from a class at an accredited university, college, or other accredited school that is not a high school, or a state-approved technical or vocational training institution

3. to and from required probation activities and activities required by a drug and alcohol education or treatment program you’ve been ordered to attend

4. to and from necessary doctor or hospital visits for yourself or a member of your household, but you must have a written statement from a licensed medical professional

5. to and from a state motor vehicle office on business related to your driver’s license

6. to and from your child’s school or daycare if your child’s attendance is a condition of enrollment or employment at an accredited university, college, or other school, or a state-approved technical or vocational training institution

WHY WOULD SOMEONE BE DENIED A CONDITIONAL LICENSE?

Even upon completing the IDP, some drivers will not qualify for a conditional driver’s license. The reasons why you may not qualify include but are not limited to these:

1. You have three or more convictions that are alcohol-related in the previous ten years.

2. You have a conviction for homicide, criminally negligent homicide, assault, or criminal negligence, and that conviction arises from a traffic accident or another driving incident.

3. You have a conviction for another crime and that conviction arises from the same incident as the current alcohol-related conviction.

4. You have more than one reckless driving conviction in the last three years.

5. You have two or more driver’s license suspensions or revocations – not linked to the current conviction – in the last three years.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of the reasons why someone with a suspended license may not qualify for a conditional driver’s license.

New York will refuse to grant a conditional driver’s license to any driver with a suspended license if the state believes that driver is an “unusual and immediate” risk to others.

FOR WHAT REASONS CAN A CONDITIONAL LICENSE BE REVOKED?

If you are granted a conditional driver’s license in New York, you must use it carefully and abide by all of a conditional driver’s license’s terms and conditions.

A conditional driver’s license may be revoked for reasons including but not limited to:

1. any failure to attend, participate in, or meet the requirements of a court-ordered drug and alcohol education or rehabilitation program

2. a conviction for any new drug or alcohol-related traffic offense

3. a conviction for speeding, reckless driving, racing, following too closely, or other particular traffic violations occurring while driving with the conditional license

In fact, if the state receives or finds anything which suggests that you should not have a conditional license, it will probably be revoked.

WHAT IF YOU ARE NOT A RESIDENT OF NEW YORK?

If you’re convicted of DWAI or DWI in New York, but you’re not a resident of the state, what is your option? New York cannot grant any kind of driver’s license to a non-resident. For example, if you are a resident of California, you would need the help of a California DUI defense attorney to get you their form of conditional license.

However, you may be eligible for a “conditional driving privilege” with terms and conditions similar to a conditional license.

HOW CAN YOU AVOID THIS TYPE OF LEGAL TROUBLE ENTIRELY?

Clearly, and for a number of reasons, no one wants to be convicted of DWI or DWAI, but there’s only one certain way to avoid that kind of legal trouble.

Don’t Drink and Drive.

If you are charged with DWI or DWAI in New York City or on Long Island, more than your driver’s license will be at stake. Your freedom and your future will also be at risk.

You’ll need immediate legal help. You’ll need to contact an experienced and trustworthy Long Island criminal defense lawyer who will protect your rights and fight aggressively for justice on your behalf.