An Act To Require a Test for Operating Under the Influence for a Driver Involved in an Accident That Caused Bodily Injury
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
Sec. 1. 29-A MRSA §2522, sub-§1, as amended by PL 2003, c. 565, §1, is further amended to read:
1. Mandatory submission to test. If there is probable cause to believe that death or apparent serious bodily injury has occurred or will occur as a result of an accident, an operator of a motor vehicle involved in the motor vehicle accident shall submit to a chemical test, as defined in section 2401, subsection 3, to determine blood-alcohol level or drug concentration in the same manner as for OUI.
Sec. 2. 29-A MRSA §2522, sub-§5, as enacted by PL 1993, c. 683, Pt. A, §2 and affected by Pt. B, §5, is amended to read:
5. Scope of hearing. The scope of any hearing the Secretary of State holds pursuant to section 2483 must include whether there was probable cause to believe that the person was the operator of a motor vehicle involved in a motor vehicle accident in which a death or apparent serious bodily injury occurred or will occur and whether the person failed to submit to and complete the test. If a person shows, after hearing, that the person was not under the influence of intoxicants or that the person did not negligently cause the accident, then the suspension must be immediately removed.
Sec. 3. 29-A MRSA §2522, sub-§6 is enacted to read:
6. Definition. For purposes of this section, "serious bodily injury" has the same meaning as in Title 17-A, section 2, subsection 23.
Summary
This bill requires mandatory OUI testing for an operator of a motor vehicle involved in an accident involving serious bodily injury, just as current law requires for motor vehicle accidents involving death.