Is refusing a breathalyzer an admission of guilt?
No, and it would be REALLY FOOLISH to take any type of sobriety test (breathalyzer, touch your nose, walk the line) if you KNOW you are impaired! You would be simply giving them evidence to convict you of DUI, rather than leaving them the burden of proving the case with whatever they already have. One Constitutional Law professor at a Boston law school once said you have no legal obligation to even get out of the car, let alone prove to the police that you’re actually drunk or sober. If they want to forcibly remove you, they had better have a PRETTY good case already, knowing that they are going to be sued either way. Massachusetts then passed a law making it a crime to resist an illegal arrest!
No, it isn’t. The fact that you refused, however, can legally be brought to the attention of the judge or jury and they are permitted to take the refusal into account when deciding your guilt. The average person would likely infer that you knew you had had too much to drink to be driving. Better to take the test and hope for the best.
