You’ve probably heard that if you’re pulled over for drunk driving, you might be asked to take a chemical test. What you might not know is that if you’re facing a DUI charge, there are actually two different types of breath tests that the police might ask you to take. In Michigan, DUI is known as Operating While Intoxicated, or OWI.
Michigan law says that by driving a motor vehicle in the state, you’ve already consented to taking a chemical test. That means that if you don’t take the test, you can face a Michigan driver’s license suspension. In most cases, law enforcement asks you to take a breath test. In some cases, they might give you the option of a DataMaster.
The DataMaster is the breath test machine that’s at the police station. You take this test after you’re arrested for drunk driving. Law enforcement drives you back to the station and reads you your chemical test rights. Then they offer you the breath test.
If you don’t take the DataMaster test or any chemical test, you can suffer a year’s long suspension of your driver’s license. You have a right to an administrative hearing on your driver’s license suspension. You only have fourteen days to make the request for this hearing after your arrest, so it’s important that you contact a Michigan drunk driving attorney as soon as possible in order to request your Traverse City driver’s license hearing. If you’re seeking reinstatement Michigan driver’s license, an attorney can help you make sure that you take the proper steps to request this hearing.
The other breath test that law enforcement might offer you during a drunk driving investigation is a PBT. This is short for preliminary breathalyzer test. They offer this test on the side of the road to see if there’s enough evidence to convict you.
If you don’t take the PBT test, it’s a civil infraction. That means that they can’t arrest you just for failing to take a PBT. Also, refusing the PBT doesn’t mean that you lose your driver’s license or that your Traverse City drivers license is suspended. Refusing the PBT doesn’t affect your driver’s license at all. If you refuse the PBT, law enforcement can still arrest you. If you refuse the DataMaster test, you can lose your license for up to a year. Then you might have to go to a driver’s license administrative hearing in order to contest the revocation.
Law enforcement is supposed to run maintenance checks on both their PBT and their DataMaster machines. Many law enforcement agencies don’t bother. Your Traverse City drunk driving attorney can help you demand the paperwork in order to determine if law enforcement failed to do their job in your case. If they made an error, the result might be dismissal of your case.
If you’re facing a Michigan driver’s license suspension or a Traverse City drunk driving charge, Grand Traverse drunk driving charge or a DUI or OWI charge in Antrim, Leelanau, Kalkaska, Wexford, Benzie or Manistee counties, we invite you to contact our offices. We specialize in representing your rights to the fullest extent of the law. We handle driver’s license restoration hearings, Traverse City driver’s license administrative hearings and license hearings throughout Michigan. Let us show you what sets us apart. Call us today.