Motorists must be warned of the consequences of breath-test refusal in a language they understand, a divided New Jersey Supreme Court held Monday in a ruling that the dissenting justices say will make it harder to convict non-English speakers of drunken driving.
Reversing a refusal conviction, the 4-3 majority said that — despite the statutory implied consent to blood-alcohol testing that applies to all drivers — reading the English version of the standard warning to those not fluent in English defeats the Legislature’s purpose of ensuring motorists are “informed” of the testing requirement and the penalties for refusing to comply.
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