No-Refusal kicks in this 4th of July weekend

What’s a DWI arrest, subsequent conviction going to cost you these days?

“Not sure. My dad’s paying for it.”

Well, it used to be around 10 grand, what with the attorney, court costs, bail.

With inflation, it’s more today. Plus, there are all those fun drug/alcohol classes you’ll have to take post-conviction. Drug and alcohol testing for who knows how long, which costs a lot. Increased cost of your automobile insurance.

If you’re real unlucky, you hit another vehicle while driving drunk and cause serious harm to someone, or worse, death. Goodbye, life as you once knew it.

Tuesday morning, Hidalgo County District Attorney “Terry” Palacios and municipal police chiefs met to announce that this holiday, July 4th, will be like most of the other holidays these days — a No–Refusal Weekend.

Only Two Beers?

For police, that means they don’t have to listen to a suspected drunk’s explanation of why they were weaving all over the road, doing 80 in a 30, with an open container in the front seat, and that familiar refrain, “I only had two beers, not counting the one in my lap.”

Beginning at 12:01 a.m. Thursday, July 2nd, the No-Refusal policy kicks in and lasts through July 5th, according to Palacios.

So, if you’re drunk all day Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, better to stay home, or call a cab, Uber, Lyft, a friend, until you sober up on Sunday, before calling in sick for work on Monday.

During a No-Refusal weekend, those stopped while driving drunk who refuse to provide a breath sample are subject to blood testing at the scene, a nearby jail, or a medical facility. (The cost will be passed on to you.)

Anyone stopped by law enforcement for suspected drunk driving from Thursday through Sunday, later backed up by the inability to walk a straight line, touch their nose with the help of a flashlight, stand up, remember their name, or where they live, can still refuse a breathalyzer, but then a blood test will be ordered by one of the judges standing by ready to sign off on a search warrant, needed to obtain your blood sample without consent.

Then it’s all over. The courts have you by the… blood draw: .20.

“Two beers. That’s all I had.”

Even a .09 (.08 is the legal limit) is going to get you busted for DWI, and hitting that mark doesn’t take a lot.

For an average-sized American man, for example, drinking four beers in two hours may not be enough to raise your blood-alcohol content to .08 percent, but five beers likely will be. (Source: verywellmind.com.)