In most cases, the officer already has probable cause to arrest you for DUII before they ask you to do standardized field sobriety tests (SFTs). The officer will ask you to perform SFTs to develop additional evidence to be used against you in a criminal prosecution. You have the right to refuse a field sobriety test, but, unless you ask for a lawyer before SFTs are requested, the evidence of your refusal may be shown to a jury if you later go to trial.
Under Oregon’s implied consent law, you are deemed to have consented to submit to a breath test when you got your license. If the police request a breath test and you have a BAC (blood alcohol content) of 0.08% or higher your license will be suspended for a 90-day period starting 30 days after the breath test failure (for a first offense). If you refuse the breath test, your license will be suspended for 1 year beginning 30 days after the refusal (for a first offense). The police will usually get a search warrant to draw your blood if you refuse a breath test. You may challenge the suspension of your license for a breath test failure or a refusal, but you must do so by requesting a DMV hearing within 10 days of the notice of suspension. This is another reason why it is critical that you talk to DUII attorney as soon as you are charged.
Under current Oregon case law, the police may not ask you to perform field sobriety tests or to submit to a breath test if you have asked for a lawyer. If you invoke your right to an attorney on the roadside the police will apply for a search warrant to seize and search your blood, but you will not receive a suspension for failing or refusing a breath test.
- Refusing to take these tests can have its own set of consequences, and it’s important to understand what those are.
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