Is there a law that requires a driver to be tested for alcohol or drugs at thescene of an accident that causes a death?
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Is there a law that requires a driver to be tested for alcohol or drugs at thescene of an accident that causes a death?
My brother was out for a walk and was run over and killed. No tests were done on the driver. I assumed that any death involving an automobile required some type of drug testing. In GA.
Asked on February 19, 2011 under Criminal Law, Georgia
Answers:
SJZ, Member, New York Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
It is certainly common to test for DUI after a fatal accident, but there are reasons why it might not be done:
1) There appear to be no grounds for conducting the testing--for example, no signs of intoxication and some other obvious cause for the accident (e.g. black ice, blown tire, etc.)
2) Too much time has passed after the accident and before the police had the driver to make a test reliable or even possible. Alcohal is metabolized over time, and also what matters is not current BAL but the level at the time of the accident. Too much time precludes testing.
Also, even if the police should have tested, there is no legal cause of action against the state for their failure to do so, and no legal cause against the driver for the fact that he or she did not have a DUI test (e.g. breathelyzer, field sobriety, bloodwork test).
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