The New Jersey Supreme Court recently overturned a DUI conviction of a man who failed to take a breathalyzer test because he did not understand English, Lancaster Intelligencer Journal reported. So what does that have to do with Pennsylvania?
Like New Jersey, Pennsylvania DUI lawyer Jeff Conrad says the Keystone State also automatically suspends the license of any motorist who refuses a blood-alcohol test. It's called implied consent law, which refers to the implicit consent to a BAC test for the privilege of driving:
"Pennsylvania has the same kind of implied consent, so this could have ramifications for [state] law."
In Pennsylvania, as in most other states, motorists who refuse an alcohol test lose their license for one year. Drivers with past DUI convictions or who have refused alcohol testing in the past face at least three years of suspension.
But motorists who don't speak English, or at least not well enough to understand an officer's request for a breathalyzer test, sometimes are penalized. The defendant in the New Jersey case, German Marquez, only speaks Spanish; he didn't understand when the officer reminded him about the implied consent law in English.
The court agreed with his attorney (not named in the article), who argued that his client had a right to be informed in a language he actually understands:
"If the statement were translated, it would level the playing field equal to English speakers."
Nearly one-fifth of Lancaster County's Latino population speaks English "not well or not at all," according to 2005 census data. And since Pennsylvania offers drivers' manuals -- which include a section on implied consent law -- in both English and Spanish, some legal observers believe a similar case here could result in a ruling similar to that reach by New Jersey's high court.
It would be interesting to hear whether Philadelphia DUI lawyers believe a similar ruling could be issued by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
Related Resources:
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Implied Consent (FindLaw's LawBrain)
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Search Philadelphia DUI Law Firms (FindLaw)
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Miss Montana Jennifer Hepner's DUI Case: Implied Consent Law and License Suspension (FindLaw's Common Law Blog)
