Question:

Should I agree to take a chemical test? What happens if I don't?

Answer:

There are three adverse consequences to refusing to submit to a breath or blood test (or urine if neither is available or if drugs are suspected):

• Your driver's license will be suspended for one year rather than four months; if this is a second offense, the suspension is for two years. Unlike a suspension for having over .08% blood-alcohol, there is no possibility of obtaining a work-restricted license.
• A refusal, if alleged in the complaint, carries a mandatory minimum jail sentence.
• The fact of refusing can be introduced into evidence at trial as evidence of "consciousness of guilt". Of course, the defense is free to offer other reasons for the refusal, such as fear of needles or inability to blow into the machine hard enough.

Thus, the decision is one of weighing the likelihood of an incriminating blood-alcohol result against the consequences of refusing.