Driving Under the Infuence Act 13 MIRC Ch.3 TITLE 13 MOTOR VEHICLES CHAPTER 3 - DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE s Repubic of the Marsha Isands Jepipiin Ke Ejukaan DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE ACT Arrangement of Sections Section Page 301. Short Tite.... 3 302. Interpretation.... 3 303. Defined.... 5 304. Impied Consent.... 5 305. Refusing a Test... 6 306. Faiing a Test... 7 307. Test Resuts.... 7 308. Punishment.... 8 309. Reguations; Evidence.... 8 Page 1
Driving Under the Infuence Act 13 MIRC Ch.3 301 TITLE 13 MOTOR VEHICLES CHAPTER 3 - DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE s Repubic of the Marsha Isands Jepipiin Ke Ejukaan DRIVING UNDER THE INFLUENCE ACT AN ACT detaiing the prohibition on driving under the infuence. Commencement: March 16, 1993 Source: P.L. 1993-46 301. Short Tite. This Chapter sha be known as the Driving Under the Infuence Act. [For ease of reference this egisation was excerpted, aong with that Chapter s definitions, from Chapter 1 and assigned its own Chapter. A short tite was suppied by the Reviser. Note. the tense and stye of anguage differs significanty from the remainder of the Code. Section numbering stye modified] 302. Interpretation. In this Chapter, uness the context otherwise requires: chauffeur s icense means an operator s icense issued to a person permitting him to operate: (i) (ii) any motor vehice of a capacity of ten (10) or more passengers whie in use in conveying schoo chidren to and from schoo; or any motor vehice in use as a passenger-carrying conveyance for hire. Chief of Poice means the Chief of Poice of the Repubic: crosswak means that portion of a roadway incuded within the proongation or connection of curb ines or atera boundary ines of highways and property ines at intersections, or any other portion of a roadway ceary Page 3
13 MIRC Ch.3 302 Driving Under the Infuence Act (d) (e) indicated for pedestrian crossing by ines or other marking on the surface: drug means any substance that affects a person s menta or physica state, incuding gasoine, narcotics, marijuana, prescription medication, non-prescription medication, or any iega substance: foreign vehice means any motor vehice or traier which sha be brought into the Repubic and which has not been registered therein: (f) intersection means the area embraced within the proongation or connection of the atera curb ines or, if none, then the atera boundary ines of two or more highways which join one another at an ange, whether or not one highway crosses the other; (g) (h) (i) (j) (k) oca government means Loca Government Counci estabished under the Loca Government Act 1980; meta tires means a tires the surfaces of which are in contact with the highway and are whoy or party of meta or other hard, non-resiient materia; motor vehice means any vehice, as defined in this Section, which is sef-propeed; officia traffic sign means a signs and markings not inconsistent with this Chapter and paced or erected by authority of a pubic body or officia having jurisdiction for the purpose of guiding, directing, warning or reguating traffic; operator means any person who is in actua physica contro of a motor vehice upon a highway; (1) owner means a person who hods the ega tite to a vehice. If a vehice is the subject of an agreement for the conditiona sae or ease thereof with the right of purchase upon performance of the conditions stated in the agreement and with an immediate right of possession vested in the conditiona vendee or essee, or if a mortgagor of a vehice is entited to possession, then such conditiona vendee or essee or mortgagor sha be deemed to be the owner for the purpose of this Chapter: Page 4 r
Driving Under the Infuence Act 13 MIRC Ch.3 303 (m) (n) (o) (p) (q) (r) 303. Defined. person means any natura person, firm, co-partnership, association or corporation; poiceman means any member of the Poice Force of the Repubic and incudes a member of the Poice Force of any Loca Government Counci: right of way means the priviege of the immediate use of the highway; street or highway means any way or pace of whatever nature open to the use of the pubic, as a matter of right, for purposes of vehicuar trave; traier means any vehice without motor power designed to carry property or passengers; vehice means any device in, upon or by which any person or property is or may be transported or drawn upon a pubic highway, except devices moved by human power or used excusivey upon stationary rais or tracks; (s) you incudes a natura person, firm, partnership, corporation, association, or any ega entity. [P.L. 1986-5, 2, amended by P L. 1993-46, 1.] (1) It is a crime if you drive a vehice on a street and you - have 0.1 percent of acoho by weight in your bood system as measured by a bood or breath test; or are under the infuence of acoho and/or drugs which renders you unabe to drive with the caution characteristic of a sober person. (2) If you fai a breath test and have 0.1 percent or more of acoho in your bood within two hours after being arrested for driving under the infuence you wi be presumed to be under the infuence at the time you were driving. [P.L. 1993-46, 4, 41(1)]. 304. Impied Consent. (1) If you drive a vehice on a street you must take a breath test if asked to do so by a poiceman. If a poiceman beieves that a breath test is not avaiabe, is not practica, is not possibe, if the testing machine is Page 5
13 MIRC Ch.3 305 Driving Under the Infuence Act not working propery, or may harm someone you must take a bood test. A poiceman may ask you to take a test ony if he has reasonabe grounds to beieve you were driving under the infuence and ony after you are awfuy arrested and tod that you are required to take a test and what the penaty is for not taking it. (2) If you are unconscious or unabe to refuse a test it wi be presumed that you have agreed to a test as under subsection (1). [P.L. 1993-46, 4,41(2)]. 305. Refusing a Test (1) Before you can be punished for refusing to take a test, a poiceman must te you that if you refuse your driver s icense wi immediatey be taken away by the poiceman and that you wi not get it back for six months. If you sti refuse to take a test, you wi not be forced to do so, but the poiceman wi take your driver s icense on the spot and you wi not get it back for six months. The poiceman wi give you a receipt for your driver s icense which wi te you that you may request a hearing to get it back. (2) You may request a hearing concerning the return of your driver s icense. You must request this hearing in writing and fie it with the District Court within 30 days of your refusa of a test. The District Court must hod a Driver s License Hearing within 30 days of your request, or it may combine the hearing with your arraignment on your driving under the infuence charge if that is sooner. The District Court wi decide if your drivers icense shoud be kept by the poice department for the fu six months or returned after the hearing. This hearing is separate from any hearing or tria on your driving under the infuence charge. A record of the hearing wi be made. (3) The District Court wi determine whether or not your refusa was awfu. It wi decide: (d) if the poiceman had reasonabe grounds to beieve you were driving under the infuence; if you were arrested; if you refused to take a test after the poicemen asked you; and if you were tod that if you refused to take a test your driver s icense woud be taken away for six months. Page 6 r
Driving Under the Infuence Act 13 MIRC Ch.3 306 (4) The District Court wi te you in writing of its decision; you may appea that decision to the High Court. If the District Court does not hod a hearing within 30 days after your request you wi immediatey get your icense back. However, even if the District Court orders the poice to return your driver s icense after the hearing, the Court may take it away again if it finds you guity of driving under the infuence at your tria. [P.L. 1993-46, 4, 41(3a)]. 306. Faiing a Test (1) If you fai a test you wi automaticay be given a hearing concerning the return of your driver s icense. This hearing wi be combined with your arraignment on the driving under the infuence charge, or if no charges are fied by the Attorney-Genera s Office within 30 days of your arrest, then at a separate hearing hed within 30 days of your written request, as provided for in Subsection (2). The District Court wi determine if your driver s icense shoud be kept for the fu six months or returned after your hearing. A record of the hearing wi be made. (2) The District Court wi decide: if the poiceman had reasonabe grounds to beieve you were driving under the infuence: and if you faied the test. (3) The District Court wi te you in writing of its decision: you may appea that decision to the High Court. However, even if the District Court orders the poice to return your driver s icense after your hearing, the Court may take it away again if it finds you guity of driving under the infuence at your tria. [P.L. 1993-46, 4, 41(3b)] 307. Test Resuts. (1) The test resuts of the amount of acoho or drugs in your bood may be used as evidence in a tria or a hearing. (2) If you take a test you must be given the compete resuts of the test if you or your attorney asks for them. (3) If you refuse to take a test the fact that you refused may be used as evidence in a tria or hearing. [P.L. 1993-46, 4, 41(4)] Page 7
13 MIRC Ch.3 308 Driving Under the Infuence Act 308. Punishment. (1) The first time you are convicted of driving under the infuence you sha be iabe to: be put in jai for at east 3 days but not over 1 year; pay a fine of at east $100 but not over $1,000; and have your driver s icense taken away by the Court for at east 30 days but not over 6 months. (2) The second or more times you are convicted of driving under the infuence within 5 years you sha be iabe to: be put in jai for at east 20 days but not over 1 year; pay a fine of at east $200 but not over $1,000; have your driver s icense taken away by the Court for at east 60 days but not over 6 months. (3) The District Court must give you at east the minimum punishment isted above. The Court may however give you community service duty instead of the fine. (4) If you are convicted of driving under the infuence and you seriousy injure anyone other than yoursef you sha be iabe to: be put in jai for at east 1 year but not over 3 years; pay a fine of at east $200 but not over $2,000: and have your driver s icense taken away by the Court for at east 90 days but not over 2 years. (5) The District Court must give you at east the minimum punishment isted in subsection (4). The Court may however give you community service duty instead of a fine. [P.L. 1993-46, 4, 41(5)]. 309. Reguations; Evidence. (1) The Poice Department sha make reguations to ensure the accuracy of breath test resuts. (2) Faiure to foow the reguations affects the weight not the admissibiity of test resuts as evidence. If the reguations are foowed test resuts are presumed accurate. (3) The Rues of Evidence do not appy to hearings concerning the return of a driver s icense. Page 8 r
Driving Under the Infuence Act 13 MIRC Ch.3 309 (4) Pubished materias concerning the vaidity of testing equipment and interpretation of test resuts are admissibe as evidence. (5) Pubished materias concerning the reationship between eves of acoho in the bood at the time of driving and test resuts are admissibe as evidence. (6) Pubished materias concerning the reationship between eves of acoho in the bood and being under the infuence are admissibe as evidence. Page 9