Drunk drivers can avoid breath test if they do not speak English
The state Supreme Court ruled on Monday that the New Jersey drivers that do not speak English must be informed in a language they understand of the consequences of refusing to take the alcohol breath test if they are accused of driving under the influence of alcohol.
No other state requires the translations of the statement, though New York and Washington provide free access to translators. New Jersey has provided since now access to printed translations of the statement and lawyer Jeffrey Mandel says that he is certain that more states are going to follow New Jersey’s example. It should not be a logistic problem for the police since every department has access to computers and they have cars provided with laptops. State law does not require the understanding of the statement; they just find it compulsory that the statement is read.
This decision provides immunity to any drunk driver that speaks a language different from the one that the police officer is able to speak or translate, and it will be a tough job since there are over 150 different languages spoken in New Jersey. In the last three months, New Jersey police has been provided with a website that contains 10 written and audio recorded different versions of the statement. This website has been used at the police station before applying it to the breath test.
