Montana is taking a stronger stance on impaired driving.
The Montana highway patrol reports about 50-percent of those suspected of DUI refuse to have their blood-alcohol level tested.
A new law that goes into effect today aims to stop that practice by allowing an officer to call a judge on the spot to get a warrant for a blood test.
Captain Keith Edgel of the Montana Highway Patrol said, “People are going to learn that refusals are not going to be an avenue or a loophole they can use to avoid prosecution.”
While new statistics show the number of drunk drivers on Montana roads in 2010 took a dip from previous years, Montana has consistently topped the nation in alcohol-related fatalities.
For DUI Task Force Member, Jeannie Martin, Montana’s DUI problem hits close to home.
A drunk driver slammed into her daughter’s car nearly 30 years ago, taking her life and leaving her children without a mother.
“You never get over it. You learn to live with it. There are drunk driving incidents. I refuse to call them accidents because the drinking was not an accident. What happened afterwards was an incident that may or may not have cost someone their life,” Martin said.
Before today, drivers who refused to submit to a blood or breath test lost their licenses for six months on their first offense and up to a year on their second or subsequent offenses.
“What we see is that’s not really a deterrent for people. People feel they can slide by and sneak by for six months and maybe sometimes a year of driving and not ever getting pulled over,” Captain Edgel said.
Officers will have a template that is fill-in-the blank format, so once the judge is on the phone, they will have all the information on hand.
The judge will then issue either a verbal warrant or fax a warrant to the officer’s car.
Martin said she hopes people when people realize this loophole is gone, they will find alternatives to driving impaired.
“If I get out there and drive, and I’ve been drinking, and I get pulled over, I’m going to have the privilege of giving a sample, and that will hopefully help some people think twice,” she said.
The new law only applies to those who have a previous or pending DUI or have refused a blood-alcohol test in the past.
Depending on resources, a phlebotomist will take the blood sample at either the jail or a hospital.
