Via KFGO: Minnesota District Court Judge Steven Cahill dismissed charges against two individuals in Clay County who refused to submit to blood alcohol tests on the basis that the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Missouri v. McNeely, 133 S.Ct. 1552 (2013), requires law enforcement to obtain a search warrant to obtain samples for chemical testing for blood-alcohol content. Cahill is now on the outs with Clay County prosecutors who argue the Minnesota Court of Appeals’ upholding of the state’s “implied consent” law permits prosecution.
While this is not a North Dakota story, it has some importance as our state’s courts often look to neighboring jurisdictions when making rulings on newly-arising issues. As discussed in a prior post regarding the problems created by North Dakota’s changes to its DUI laws, there are some issues with the conflict created by the McNeely decision and the criminalization of refusing to submit to chemical testing under the DUI and implied consent laws. One of those issues is being argued at the North Dakota Supreme Court this morning in State v. Brenny.
6/5/2011 UPDATE: The Cahill-Melton debate continues in the press, as you can read in today’s Fargo Forum. Today’s article outlines more of the issues at play with the criminalization of refusing to submit to chemical testing under the DUI/implied consent statutes.
