/24-7PressRelease/ - June 30, 2008 - Police in Ohio will have expanded authority in the near future. They can, if they feel the need, conduct several tests (blood and urine) on the drivers whom they suspect drunk.
Gov. Ted Strickland will soon sign up the bill into law and it will encompass at least two guilty verdicts against the drivers who consume drugs or alcohol. The Ohio police will have more freedom this way.
Authorities now do require a warrant to conduct tests on drivers who refuse originally. According to statistics given by Associated Press, there are other states which undergo blood tests only in a life threatening situation like dangerous injuries or serious accidents.
Sherri Bevan Walsh is of the view that this law will greatly discourage lawbreakers from drinking and driving. A Summit County Prosecutor, she has comprehensively worked on the bill with sponsor, state Sen. Timothy Grendell, R-Chesterland. She added that further disapproval to Breathalyzer test will award drivers with a yearâ s deferral of their license.
Regarding the continuous lose of relevance of the above punishment, Walsh said, ''Our position on that is they are withholding key evidence of a crime, and it is not unconstitutional to do a mandatory test or a mandatory blood draw''.
In 1966, United Stateâ s SC provided a strong legal base to this legislation. The justices, in 5-4 decision, said that even a warrant is not needed to take a blood sample from the suspected individual.
Conversely, Civil liberties advocates differed and called it unlawful.
''If it were really hard to get a warrant, it would be one thing,'' Jeffrey Gamso, legal director, American Civil Liberties Union, Ohio said. ''But they can get a warrant in a hurry. There's always a judge on duty.''
At the same time, there are many DUI lawyers from other countries who are of the same opinion. They are of the view that taking away the power of court is no way to go about it.
Walsh, on the other hand, has solid stats to prove that such a bill and its enforcement is necessary. ''We are seeing way too many repeat offenders on the road,'' Walsh said. She supported her statement with the stats of Dept. of Highway Safety which showed that 38,156 drivers had 5+ DUI convictions in 2006.
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