Though an accident occurred in Pennsylvania, a recent accident shows the perils of either consenting or not consenting to blood alcohol test in South Carolina as well. An intoxicated individual states that he was actually the passenger in car that was struck head-on by another driver going the wrong way.

In the ensuing chaos, this individual was thought to be the driver of the car and was asked to submit to a blood alcohol test. When the individual refused to submit, his driver's license and commercial driver's license were both suspended for 1-year. His two attempts to appeal this particular ruling have not met with success, and he has since lost his job as a truck driver.

Under both Pennsylvania and South Carolina law, refusal to submit to a blood test can automatically lead to a license suspension. Under such circumstances, an intoxicated individual is likely to be punished no matter what choice he or she makes. However, when an individual was not even behind the wheel and he's intoxicated, if the person is mistakenly identified as the driver he may be wrongfully punished under whichever option he or she chooses. Then he will need to fight the matter out in court.

This type of case illustrates the need for experienced legal counsel in DUI defense since the stakes are so high concerning DUI penalties and wage loss, and since the chances of error in the way that a DUI investigation and arrest procedure are conducted are at least present.

A dissenting judge during the accused first appealed stated: "The purpose of the DUI laws is to prevent persons from operating motor vehicles under the influence of alcohol, not to punish passengers who refuse [blood-alcohol] testing." This seems like commonsense.

Source: Pennlive.com, "Passenger's refusal to submit to blood-alcohol test triggers 'collision between law, common sense,' lawyer says," by Matt Miller, Dec. 31, 2011