Under the Massachusetts implied consent law, by applying for a Massachusetts driver’s license or driving in Massachusetts on an out of state license, every motorist agrees to consent to a chemical test of his breath or blood if he is arrested for operating under the influence of alcohol.

If a motorist refuses the blood alcohol test, the implied consent law imposes administrative driver's license suspensions in addition to any DUI suspensions or revocations. The Mass. Breath test refusal statute applies only to actual breathalyzers at police stations and not to preliminary breath test devices or portable breath test devices, which the police sometimes use at the scene of a DUI stop. This is because a preliminary breath test is not a "chemical test" which triggers the administrative license revocation process. The PBT is given before the motorist is arrested for OUI and is used to establish probable cause for the drunk driving arrest.

To trigger administrative license suspensions, breath test refusals in Massachusetts must be properly and adequately documented and witnessed. Also, the person refusing must be accurately informed of his rights and of the refusal consequences.

Attorney Brian E. Simoneau has achieved outstanding successes in challenging this law and putting deserving drivers back on the road, legally.

Refusing to submit to a breathalyzer or blood test, after being arrested for DUI in Natick, can have severe consequences, in the form of a license suspension which ranges from 180 days to life, depending on the driver’s age and record.

First offenders, who are at least 21 years old, will have their licenses suspended for 6 months for a chemical test or breathalyzer refusal.

Second offenders, and first offenders who are under 21, will have their licenses suspended for 3 years for a breathalyzer refusal.

DUI 3rd offenders will have their licenses suspended for 5 years for a refusal.

4th offenders will have their licenses suspended for life, with no possibility for a hardship license.

These harsh administrative license suspension penalties were implemented because prosecutors were having trouble getting DUI convictions in cases where the defendant refused to take the breathalyzer. Now, persons arrested for operating under the influence have an incentive to produce incriminating evidence. 

Natick MA Breathalyzer and chemical test refusal penalties apply even where a DUI defendant is found not guilty. However, when the charges are resolved in the defendant’s favor, he or she is entitled to a hearing in court and there is a presumption that the defendant should get his or her license reinstated. The prosecution can overcome this presumption by showing that putting the DUI defendant back on the road would endanger public safety. Where a person is convicted of OUI, the breathalyzer refusal suspension will run first and the OUI suspension will start only after the defendant serves the chemical test refusal suspension.

Given the potentially long license suspensions triggered by breathalyzer refusals in Massachusetts, it makes sense to appeal your chemical test refusal suspension. Attorney Brian E. Simoneau specializes in these appeals and he has achieved outstanding results across Massachusetts for his chemical test refusal (CTR) clients.