DWI “No Refusal” Campaign for Labor Day Holiday

TYLER — The Tyler Police Department will participate in the “No Refusal” enforcement campaign for this Labor Day Holiday. Since January 1, the department has arrested 256 drivers for DWI. Law enforcement agencies in Smith County will be out in force during the Labor Day Holiday, on the lookout for intoxicated drivers on streets, highways, and lakes. Again, officers won’t be taking “no” for an answer once again. The No-Refusal initiative got underway today and continues through Monday.

A multi-joint effort involving the Smith County District Attorney’s Office and police agencies from all over the county will participate. Upon the arrest of a suspected drunk driver, he or she will be asked to blow into a breath-test instrument or take a blood test. If the driver refuses, officers will obtain an immediate search warrant signed by an on-call judge to have blood drawn by a certified nurse on staff at the Smith County Jail. The blood will then be analyzed to determine whether the driver’s blood-alcohol concentration is 0.08 or higher, the legal limit for driving in Texas.

Police say it is the intent of all law enforcement agencies that this joint effort will act as a deterrent, persuading people to avoid driving while intoxicated because they know that police officers will be determining sobriety with or without the driver’s consent.