If you say ‘no’ to a DUI breath test this weekend, you may have blood drawn

An annual law enforcement crackdown on impaired driving has begun across the state, and the effort will have an extra layer in several northeast Kansas counties.

As part of You Drink, You Drive, You Lose, northeast Kansas counties are participating in the No Refusal Weekend, state officials said. All suspected impaired drivers who refuse breath testing will subjected to blood testing for alcohol.

While drivers can refuse to submit to a breathalyzer, prosecutors can obtain a search warrant that requires a blood draw from motorists who may be impaired.

“With the approval of a judge, anyone suspected of impaired driving who unlawfully refuses to provide a breath sample is subject to blood testing at the scene, a medical facility or nearest jail facility,” a statement released by the Kansas Department of Transportation said. “The program helps ensure that prosecutors obtain the scientific evidence needed to effectively pursue cases involving impaired driving.”

Every county in the state typically has a prosecutor and judge on call should law enforcement seek a warrant, Wichita attorney Jess Hoeme said.

Wichita attorney Chris O’Hara called the No Refusal Weekend “kind of crazy.”

“It does seem like it’s going a little far” with the enforcement effort, O’Hara said. “We’ve always heard them saying they’re going to do it, but it hasn’t happened.”

Generally, Hoeme said, saturation patrols and DUI checkpoints have not proven to be effective deterrents.

Up until early last year, a person who refused a breath test could be charged with a separate crime in Kansas. The state Supreme Court ruled that the law was unconstitutional.

Kansas drivers can refuse a breathalyzer at the scene where they’re stopped, Hoeme said, but they’ll be fined $200. They can also refuse a blood, breath or urine test later at a hospital or jail, but they’ll lose their license for a year and then have a restricted license for two years that includes an ignition control at a cost of $75 a month.

If law enforcement officers are able to obtain a search warrant requesting a blood sample from a driver, Hoeme said, that can’t be refused.

“Alcohol and driving don’t mix,” Attorney General Derek Schmidt said in a prepared statement. “Impaired driving is no accident—nor is it a victimless crime. The No Refusal Weekend brings prosecutors and law enforcement together to combat this danger on our roadways.”

Last year, there were 1,119 impaired driving crashes where at least one driver was over .08 in blood alcohol concentration, which is the legal limit in Kansas.

Law enforcement agencies across Kansas, including Wichita, are participating in the enhanced enforcement effort, which began Thursday and continues through Sept. 3. Officers will be especially vigilant at night, when impaired driving is more likely.

This story was originally published August 17, 2017 at 7:52 PM with the headline "If you say ‘no’ to a DUI breath test this weekend, you may have blood drawn."