Penalties to Increase for Individuals Who Refuse to Submit to a DUI Chemical Test

Suspected drunk drivers in South Carolina will soon face harsher penalties for refusing to submit to blood alcohol concentration testing. Under the current law, drivers who refuse to the breath or blood test face an automatic license suspension ranging from three to six months. The new law, which will go into effect on February 10, 2009, will increase this automatic suspension to six to fifteen months, depending on whether the individual has any prior convictions.

In addition to increasing license suspension periods, the state of South Carolina is also increasing sentences for individuals with extremely high blood alcohol concentrations. South Carolina legislators agreed that if the state was going to adopt a policy of increasing penalties for high blood alcohol levels, a change needed to be made to the license suspension period as well, so that individuals are not encouraged to refuse a chemical test. "Anytime you raise the penalty for higher blood alcohol concentrations, you run the risk that more people will refuse the test. So, you have to raise the penalty for refusals," stated 7th Circuit Solicitor Trey Gowdy.

Greenville Police Chief Terri Wilfong believes that more drivers will take the extended suspension period into consideration when deciding whether or not to submit to a blood alcohol test.

Laura Hudson, legislative liason for the South Carolina chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)stated that while South Carolina's new legislation is a step in the right direction, there are additional precautions the state could adopt to combat the drunk driving epidemic plaguing South Carolina. Hudson argued that it would be in the best interest of South Carolina residents if suspected drunk drivers did not have the opportunity to drive while awaiting their DMV hearing. She emphasized, "It's not about finding loopholes. It's about public safety-or that's what it should be."

Similar DUI refusal laws have been proposed across the country. A new law taking effect January 1, 2009 in Illinois increases the license suspension period to six months for individuals who fail a blood alcohol test and raises the automatic suspension to twelve months for suspected offenders who refuse to submit to a chemical test.

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