SCOTUS Won’t Hear Appeal That Would Make It Easier To Take DUI Blood Tests

**HOLD SUNDAY FOR MONDAY**Phoenix Police Department Officer James Lawler, of the DUI Squad, seals up a blood test after administering the test to an alleged extreme DUI suspect as he works out of a mobile DUI process... **HOLD SUNDAY FOR MONDAY**Phoenix Police Department Officer James Lawler, of the DUI Squad, seals up a blood test after administering the test to an alleged extreme DUI suspect as he works out of a mobile DUI processing van Friday, Sept. 11, 2009 in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin) MORE LESS

WASHINGTON (AP) -€” The Supreme Court won’t hear an appeal from Colorado officials who want to make it easier for authorities to take blood samples from suspected drunk drivers without their permission or a warrant.

The justices on Monday let stand a state supreme court ruling that excluded evidence of a Colorado man’s blood test that showed his blood-alcohol level at the time of a traffic accident was nearly three times the legal limit.

Colorado had argued that police should be allowed to order blood samples when there is not enough time to get a warrant before blood alcohol levels decrease.

In 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that authorities must consider several factors and be able to justify why they did not obtain a warrant before drawing blood.

Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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  1. Several states already have laws regarding this issue.

    Simple solution: Change the drivers licensing laws to automatically find someone guilty of DUI - with a minimum 5 year prison time - if they refuse a BAT.

  2. Simple, but probably unconstitutional.

  3. Trust the Supremes to protect the civil liberties of the sociopath.

  4. Avatar for gr gr says:

    i know a man in CA who was found unconscious in his car pulled over on the side of the freeway.
    He woke up in a cell with a bandage over his arm indicating that blood had been drawn while he was out.
    Turns out he was not drunk, but over medicated with a new Rx he had taken that day for the 1st time.
    That’s about all I know except that he did not do jail time. Don’t know if he was charged with anything.

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