Clients will contact me and ask me if they can refuse to take a portable breath screening test if they’re asked to do so by the police. First of all, what is a portable breath screening test? A portable breath screening test is a handheld device that police officers will offer to someone who they stop, and feel may be intoxicated, before they make a decision of whether or not to arrest them. It’s an alternative, or sometimes an addition to field sobriety tests, which are generally physical coordination tests that police offer.
It turns out that it is a traffic infraction, which is subjecting a person to two points if they refuse to take that portable breath test. Under certain circumstances, people may refuse to take the portable breath test, understanding that they could be given a two-point summons for failure to take the portable breath screening test. The portable breath screening test is generally not admissible in court except to show whether the police had probable cause to arrest you for a DWI. You should ask the police officer if you could have the opportunity to call your lawyer before you make the decision of whether or not you should take the portable breath screening test.