In the State of Washington you are required to take a blood or breath test if you are arrested for a DUI.
This is called Washington’s “implied consent” law. If the arresting officer has probable cause to believe that you have been driving under the influence, then you consent to taking a chemical test of your blood or breath for the purpose of determining your blood alcohol content (BAC)
A blood test will only be given if you are unconscious or if you are receiving treatment in a medical facility. An officer can also request a blood test if he or she suspects you are under the influence of drugs. Otherwise, the officer should offer you a breath test.
According to DrivingLaws.org, “You could be arrested and asked to take a chemical test for being under the influence even if you are not driving. If you have actual, physical control of a vehicle while under the influence, then you face the same penalties as a DUI conviction. Generally, drivers find themselves arrested for actual, physical control when they realize they’ve had too much to drink, pull over to sleep it off, and an officer finds them asleep (but smelling of alcohol) in the car. The state punishes this behavior as strictly as a DUI because of the driver’s potential to wake-up and drive while still drunk. In Washington, however, a driver can be arrested for being intoxicated while in actual physical control even where the car is inoperable – it is out of gas, for example. To find out more about this, read the case State v. Smelter, 674 P.2d 690 (1984) or the law in the Washington Revised Code Annotated 46.61.504”
If you have been arrested don’t waste any time. Contact Lambert Law to get solid and sound DUI defense.
Call 360-737-1473, or click here to contact Lambert Law in Vancouver, WA.