Cal. Riverside: Refusal of a BAC test was constitutionally protected and couldn’t separately be prosecuted

Mere refusal of a BAC test was constitutionally protected and couldn’t be prosecuted. “Here, police did not attempt to obtain a warrant or to perform a forced blood draw based on another exception to the warrant requirement, such as exigent circumstances. Nevertheless, the jury was instructed, contrary to Wetzel and Camara, that it could convict defendant of a violation of section 148 based on nothing more than his exercise of the constitutional right to refuse to consent to a chemical test. This was constitutional error.” People v. Valencia, 2015 Cal. App. LEXIS 861 (App.Div. Riverside September 29, 2015).