iowa DRUNK DRIVING LAWS
Gourley, Rehkemper & Lindholm PLC - Attorneys At Law
Implied Consent Law
know Your Rights Under Iowa Law
"This will be the best security for maintaining our liberties. A nation of well-informed men, who have been taught to know and prize the rights which God has given them, cannot be enslaved." - Benjamin Franklin
Pursuant to Iowa's Implied Consent Law and the Iowa Constitution, I refuse breath, blood or urine testing until I am given a reasonable opportunity to contact my attorney. Only after a reasonable opportunity to contact and consult with my attorney can I make a knowing, voluntary, and intelligent decision regarding chemical testing. I wish to know additional information regarding the impact of my decision on my driving privileges including any commercial driving privileges and/or the issuance of a temporary restricted license.
In the event that I am not provided a sufficient opportunity to contact and consult with my attorney, I cannot make a knowing, voluntary and intelligent decision regarding chemical testing. Any decision that I do make regarding chemical testing is made uninformed and under protest and coercion and in direct response to the threat of greater punishment for exercising my constitutional rights and promise of lesser punishment in exchange for submission to your assertion of authority.
If I submit to your request for chemical testing I hereby demand that a sufficient sample of my blood, breath or urine be collected and properly sealed, and immediately refrigerated in a locked and secure refrigerator to prevent deterioration of the sample so as to permit re-analysis to be accomplished at a later date. Please honor this request for preservation of a sample by selecting a machine or type of test that can preserve a sample. After the administration of your test, I request that I be immediately transported to the nearest available private medical facility which will conduct independent testing at my own expense.
I also request that I be taken to the nearest law enforcement agency (not affiliated with your agency) that possesses an approved breath machine (DataMaster cdm) so that I may be given an independent breath test by an officer other than you or someone employed by your police department. I will pay for this test if there is a charge for conducting it. Any and all tests selected by me are being done as work product for my attorney, and they are confidential, as guaranteed by the attorney-client privilege and pursuant to my constitutional right to gather evidence in my defense. I do not consent to any independent sample being divided or collected for use by the State, nor do I consent to copies of test results being given to anyone except me or my attorney, please be advised that I want the independent breath test regardless of whether I receive an independent blood or urine test.
These requests and demands are to be considered continuing in nature.
IOWA DRIVER'S RIGHTS CARD
PROVIDED FREE TO THE PUBLIC BY:
Gourley, Rehkemper & Lindholm P.L.C.
Toll Free: 1-800-DIAL-DUI
303 Locust Street, Suite 200
Des Moines, IA 50309
Office: (515) 226-0500
www.iowaowidefenders.com
NOTICE TO OFFICER
Officer - this document constitutes an official notification of the exercise of my legal rights that should be retained for your records. By handing you this card I hereby invoke my constitutional and statutory rights under the 4th, 5th, 6th and 14th Amendments to the United States Constitution and Articles 1 Sections 7, 8, 9 and 10 of the Iowa Constitution and Iowa Code section 804.20 and 232.11. I will not consent to a search of my person, property or affects; I do not wish to answer any questions or make any statements; and I will not agree to do anything further until I have had an opportunity to contact and consult in person with my attorney.
From this moment forward I demand that I be videotaped by use of police video equipment, both at the roadside and at the police station, and that all such tapes be preserved for my later use at court so that the jury will be able to objectively determine my state of sobriety. Should video equipment not be available at the roadside, I request that an audio tape be used to record any verbal statements made during this event.
As required by Iowa law, I am providing you with my driver's license, registration and proof of insurance. I have not committed a crime or traffic violation and am requesting that all of my documentation be returned to me and that I be permitted to carry on about my business immediately. Unless you return these items to me and advise me that I am free to leave I must assume that this is more than a brief traffic stop, that my liberty is restrained, that I am under arrest, and that I must obey your orders without resistance, however, I do so under coercion and protest.
Iowa law does not require me to submit to any field sobriety testing. I know that these so-called "tests" are subjectively graded and are designed for me to fail. I therefore chose not to participate in these so-called "tests". If you ignore my constitutional and statutory rights set forth on this card and verbally coerce me into taking these exercises I am not performing any of these exercises willfully and voluntarily but am doing so only to avoid confrontation with you.
I am further requesting to have my attorney present during any questioning, testing or proceedings. I also request to place telephone calls to my attorney and family members upon my arrival at the place of confinement. I specifically request to consult in person with my attorney and a family member before I decide to submit to or refuse chemical testing.
NOTICE AND DISCLAIMER
The attached "Iowa Driver's Rights" card is intended to help educate citizens of the State of Iowa as to their rights under the law and to assist presumptively innocent individuals in properly asserting those rights. It is NOT intended to aid drunk drivers in evading punishment.
The card should be given immediately to the law enforcement officer ONLY IF any questions about alcohol or drug use are asked and:
(a) You are pulled over for any reason; or
(b) You are stopped and detained at a roadblock; or
(c) You are being questioned by law enforcement regarding recent operation of a motor vehicle; or
(d) After being involved in any type of accident
This card is meant to assist the officer in correctly determining how you wish to be treated under the law. No further communication with the officer is necessary. DO NOT READ THE CARD TO THE OFFICER! ALL POLICE OFFICERS MUST BE ABLE TO READ IN ORDER TO SUCCESSFULLY COMPLETE THEIR POLICE ACADEMY TRAINING. YOU MUST FIRST FAMILIARIZE YOURSELF WITH THE "NOTICE TO OFFICER" ON THE REMAINDER OF THIS CARD AND KNOW YOUR RIGHTS BEFORE ANY CUSTODIAL SITUATION ARISES.
Iowa Travel To Canada with An OWI
You have to be careful if you are planning to travel to Canada with an OWI on your record. Canada is one of a few countries that excludes non-citizens for having an OWI. Canada shares criminal and motor vehicle databases with the United States and a check of your record at the border or in Canada will likely show your inadmissibility into Canada.
Canadian admissibility is determined by the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (IRPA). Under IRPA, a foreign national is inadmissible into Canada if they committed or were convicted of an offense that would constitute an “indictable” offense under Canadian law. There are a number of charges that can put you into the inadmissible category of persons. The first is impaired driving when a person drives impaired to any degree, no matter how slight, by alcohol or drugs. The second is excessive BAC, when a person drives with a BAC of .08% or more. The third indictable offense is refusing to submit a PBT, breath, or a blood sample to screen for alcohol or drugs. Similarly, a conviction for boating under the influence may also render a person inadmissible into Canada. Any offense that is punishable by a prison term of ten or more years will also render you excludable. It is important to note that even if you are not criminally convicted for OWI but you lose your license in an administrative DOT hearing, you will also be excludable.
A person who has a verdict of guilty, a plea of guilty, or a deferral will be deemed inadmissible under Canadian law. A plea down to a lesser charge than OWI will not make you inadmissible unless the lesser charge would constitute an “indictable” offense under Canadian law. A comparison between the Canadian law and the law of the state you are in is necessary. A person will not only be excludable when driving into Canada but also when traveling to the country by plane and boat as well. If you are inadmissible and found in Canada you can be deported and possibly even prosecuted criminally.
All hope is not lost if you have inadmissible status, however. You may be granted relief from your inadmissibility depending on the nature, number, and timing of your convictions. A person that has a single OWI or other indictable offense that is punishable by less than ten years is automatically deemed “rehabilitated” ten years after the date the court orders its punishment if you don’t get any other convictions. A person with two or more indictable offenses (such as an OWI) cannot be deemed rehabilitated. If you fall into this category or if you just have one OWI and want to be allowed into Canada earlier than ten years, you can apply for rehabilitation status five years after the court orders your punishment. The application is available at the Immigration Canada website. The application fee ranges from $200-1000 Canadian and requires extensive documentation, including references attesting to your good character. The processing time can take up to one year, so plan accordingly.
A person can also apply for a Temporary Resident Permit for those who want to travel to Canada before the five year period. These allow for entry of up to six months. They also range from $200-1000 and can take up to 6 months to issue. These permits can be issued at the border but are rarely granted, so don’t risk it. Whether you will be issued a permit depends on the reason for the visit. Hunting, fishing, or vacation trips are least likely to be approved, while business trips and humanitarian missions are more likely to be granted a permit. The bottom line is to check with an attorney and cover your bases before you take a trip up north.
This content is a summary of, In and Out of Canada, published in NCDD Journal, Vol. 1, Issue 2, Spring 2010, by Wayne R. Foote, of Bangor, Maine. The full article can be found here.
From our offices in Des Moines, Iowa, we give high-quality representation to people throughout the State of Iowa, including Polk, Warren, Dallas, Boone, Story, and Marion counties, and the cities of Des Moines, Ames, Indianola, Adel, Boone, Nevada, Urbandale, West Des Moines, Waukee, and Knoxville
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Accidents - Injury
