Warning for motorists in Palm Beach County who are suspected of driving under the influence on February 27-28, 2009: blood draws. According to an article by Dianna Cahn, Palm Beach County Sheriff to Seek DUI Blood Tests, the Palm Beach County Sheriffs Office will be waking up Judges and requesting a warrant for the driver’s blood if they refuse to take a breath test. Under current Florida law, law enforcement is allowed to forcibly draw blood from a driver if the officer believes that someone has suffered serious bodily injury or when there is a fatality. In what is believed to be the first of its kind in Palm Beach County, if a police officer arrests a motorist for DUI and they refuse to take a breath test, Captain Patrick Kenny will mandate that an officer appears at a Judge’s house to request a warrant be issued for the driver’s blood. According to the Sheriffs spokesman, there will be three command posts set up to deal with breath testing and one central location for blood testing. Under Florida’s implied consent law, DUI drivers arrested for DUI are asked to submit to a breath test to determine the alcoholic content of their breath. In blood draw cases, prosecutors will be required to establish that the test was done in accordance with the rules and regulations set forth under the Florida administrative code. In addition, prosecutors will be forced to subpoena the person who analyzed the blood to establish the reliability of the results. Prosecutors are often frustrated when people refuse the breath test, even though the reliability of the intoxilyzer 8000 has come into question over the last several years. In an attempt to scare more people into take the breath test, the Florida legislature enacted a statute to deal with second or subsequent refusal cases. Under Florida statute 316.1939, a motorist faces another misdemeanor charge for refusing to submit to a breath test if they have previously been arrested for DUI and refused to take the breath test. For detailed information on Florida DUI check out www.FightYourDUI.com or contact our office at 1-800-FIGHT-IT.

In Tampa, Florida, the yearly Gasparilla Parade is always a time to celebrate and take part in the festivities…and drink based on the number of DUI arrests. Over the weekend, Tampa police estimated that approximately 350,000 people converged in downtown Tampa to witness the parade. Among those that gathered to watch the pirates and floats parade down Bayshore Boulevard, 141 of the participants were not so lucky to leave the same way they arrived.
Reports show that, by 7:30 PM Saturday, 79 people had been arrested by 4 agencies, including Temple Terrace Police Department, Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Department, Florida Highway Patrol and Tampa Police Department. As the weekend continued, people were arrested for DUI, felony charges, misdemeanor charges, boating under the influence and .02 violations.
The Florida Division of Alcoholic Beverages also reported that 57 people under the age of 21 were arrested for possession of alcohol.
If you or someone you know was arrested and charged with any crime during the Gasparilla Parade, please contact Stephen Higgins at 813-649-8690 for a free consultation.