(1) “Chemical test” or “chemical testing” means any qualitative or quantitative procedure which is designed to demonstrate the existence or absence of a chemical compound or chemical group. Any handheld and portable breath testing instrument, otherwise known as a roadside breath test, is excluded from this definition.
(2) “Collision” means an impact between the operator’s vehicle, or anything attached to or transported by the vehicle, and anything else, regardless of whether it is a person, a wild or domestic animal, real property, or personal property.
(3) “Commercial vehicle” means a vehicle used to transport passengers or property:
(A) If the vehicle has a gross vehicle weight rating of greater than 26,000 pounds or a lesser rating as determined by federal regulation but not less than a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,001 pounds;
(B) If the vehicle is designed to transport more than 15 passengers, including the driver;
(C) If the vehicle is a locomotive or a streetcar;
(D) If the vehicle is used to transport a material found to be hazardous by the Mayor in accordance with Chapter 14 of Title 8 [§ 8-1401 et seq.] or by the Secretary of Transportation in accordance with the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act, approved January 3, 1975 (88 Stat. 2156; 49 U.S.C. § 1801 et seq.); or
(E) If the vehicle is a vehicle for hire.
(4) “Court” means the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, except when used in the definition of “prior offense” when it shall also include courts of other jurisdictions.
(5) “Drug” means any chemical substance that affects the processes of the mind or body, including but not limited to a controlled substance as defined in § 48-901.02(4) and any prescription or non-prescription medication.
(6) “Highway” means any street, road, or public thoroughfare, or the entire width between the boundary lines of every publicly or privately maintained way, when any part thereof is open to the use of the public for purposes of vehicular or pedestrian travel.
(7) “Impaired” means a person’s ability to operate or be in physical control of a vehicle is affected, due to consumption of alcohol or a drug or a combination thereof, in a way that can be perceived or noticed.
(8) “Intoxicated” means:
(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B) of this paragraph, that:
(i) An alcohol concentration at the time of testing of 0.08 grams or more per 100 milliliters of the person’s blood or per 210 liters of the person’s breath, or of 0.10 grams or more per 100 milliliters of the person’s urine; or
(ii) Any measurable amount of alcohol in the person’s blood, urine, or breath if the person is under 21 years of age.
(B) If operating or in physical control of a commercial vehicle, that:
(i) An alcohol concentration at the time of testing of 0.04 grams or more per 100 milliliters of the person’s blood or per 210 liters of the person’s breath, or of 0.08 grams or more per 100 milliliters of the person’s urine; or
(ii) Any measurable amount of alcohol in the person’s blood, urine, or breath if the person is under 21 years of age.
(9) “Law enforcement officer” means a sworn member of the Metropolitan Police Department or a sworn member of any other police force operating in the District of Columbia.
(10) “License” means any operator’s permit or any other license or permit to operate a motor vehicle issued under the laws of the District, including:
(A) Any temporary or learner’s permit;
(B) The privilege of any person to drive a motor vehicle whether or not such person holds a valid license; and
(C) Any nonresident’s operating privilege.
(11) “Mayor” means the Mayor of the District, or his or her designee.
(12) “Measurable amount” means any amount of alcohol capable of being, but not required to be, measured.
(13) “Medical professional” means a physician, registered nurse, licensed practical nurse, or any person who by certification or licensure is qualified to draw blood.
(14) The term "motor vehicle" means all vehicles propelled by internal combustion engines, electricity, or steam. The term "motor vehicle" shall not include personal mobility devices, as the term is defined in § 50-2201.02(13), electric mobility devices, as the term is defined in § 50-2201.02(6A), motorized bicycles, as the term is defined in § 50-2201.02(11A), or a battery-operated wheelchair when operated by a person with a disability.
(15) “Nonresident” shall include any person who is not a resident of the District.
(16) “Nonresident’s operating privilege” means the privilege conferred upon a nonresident by the laws of the District relating to the operation by such person of a motor vehicle, or the use of a vehicle owned by such person, in the District.
(17) “Prior offense” means any guilty plea or verdict, including a finding of guilty in the case of a juvenile, for an offense under District law or a disposition in another jurisdiction for a substantially similar offense which occurred prior to the current offense regardless of when the arrest occurred. The term “prior offense” does not include an offense where the later of any term of incarceration, supervised release, parole, or probation ceased or expired more than 15 years before the arrest on the current offense.
(18) “Specimen” means that quantity of a person’s blood, breath, or urine necessary to conduct chemical testing to determine alcohol or drug content. A single specimen may be comprised of multiple breaths into a breath test instrument if such is necessary to complete a valid breath test, or a single blood draw or single urine sample regardless of how many times the blood or urine sample is tested.
(19) “Vehicle” means any appliance, conveyance, or carrier that moves over a highway on wheels or traction tread, including street cars, draft animals, and beasts of burden.
(20) “Vehicle for hire” means:
(A) Any motor vehicle operated in the District by a private concern or individual as an ambulance, funeral car, or sightseeing vehicle, or for which the rate is fixed solely by the hour;
(B) Any motor vehicle operated in the District by a private concern used for services including transportation paid for by a hotel, venue, or other third party;
(C) Any motor vehicle used to provide transportation within the District between fixed termini or on a schedule, including vehicles operated by the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority or other public authorities, not including rental cars; or
(D) Any other vehicle that provides transportation for a fee not operated on a schedule or between fixed termini and operating in the District; including taxicabs, limousines, party buses, and pedicabs.
§ 50–1902. Implied consent to blood-alcohol content or blood-drug content tests; administration; accidents. [Repealed]
Repealed.
§ 50–1903. Blood tests; medical professional to withdraw blood.
(a) Only a medical professional acting at the request of a law enforcement officer may withdraw blood, subject to the provisions of this chapter, for the purpose of determining the alcohol or drug content thereof. This limitation shall not apply to the taking of breath or urine specimens.
(b)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, the following persons are immune from criminal and civil liability based upon a claim of assault and battery, or any other claim that is not a claim of malpractice, for any act performed in collecting a person’s blood:
(A) Any law enforcement officer who assists in the collection of specimens from a person pursuant to this section;
(B) Any medical professional, staff, or security personnel who collects or assists in the collection of specimens from a person pursuant to this section; and
(C) Any hospital, first-aid station, clinic, or other location where specimens are collected from a person pursuant to this section.
(2) The immunity provided in this subsection shall not apply to a person who collects or assists in the collection of specimens if that person commits gross negligence or engages in intentionally wrongful conduct.
§ 50–1904. Availability of chemical test results.
Full information concerning the chemical test results administered under this chapter, including records as provided in § 5-1501.06, shall be made available to the person from whom specimens were obtained pursuant to Rule 16 of the District of Columbia Superior Court Rules of Criminal Procedure.
§ 50–1904.01. Preliminary breath test.
(a) When a law enforcement officer has reasonable grounds to believe that a person was operating or in physical control of a vehicle within the District while intoxicated or while the person’s ability to operate a vehicle is impaired by the consumption of alcohol or a drug or a combination thereof, the law enforcement officer may, without making an arrest or issuing a violation notice, request that the person submit to a preliminary breath test, to be administered by the law enforcement officer, who shall use a device which the Mayor has approved by rule for that purpose.
(b) Before administering the test, the law enforcement officer shall advise the person to be tested that the preliminary breath test is voluntary and that the results of the test will be used to aid in the law enforcement officer’s decision whether to arrest the person.
(c) The results of the preliminary breath test shall be used by the law enforcement officer to aid in the decision whether to arrest the person, and the results of the test shall not be used as evidence by the District in any prosecutions and shall not be admissible in any judicial proceeding except in any judicial or other proceeding in which the validity of the arrest or the conduct of the law enforcement officer is an issue.
§ 50–1904.02. Chemical testing after arrest.
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, when a law enforcement officer has reasonable grounds to believe that a person was operating or in physical control of a motor vehicle within the District while intoxicated or while the person’s ability to operate a motor vehicle is impaired by the consumption of alcohol or a drug or a combination thereof, after arrest of the person, the person shall:
(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2) of this subsection, be deemed to have given his or her consent, subject to the provisions of this chapter, to submitting 2 specimens for chemical testing of the person’s blood, breath, or urine, for the purpose of determining alcohol or drug content; and
(2) Submit 2 specimens for chemical testing of his or her blood, breath, or urine for the purpose of determining alcohol or drug content when he or she is involved in a collision in the District.
(b) When a person is required to submit specimens for chemical testing pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, a law enforcement officer shall elect which types of specimens will be collected from the person and the law enforcement officer or a medical professional shall collect the specimen subject to the restriction in § 50-1903(a); provided, that the person may object to a particular type of specimen collection for chemical testing on valid religious or medical grounds. If a person objects to blood collection on valid religious or medical grounds, that person shall only be required to submit breath or urine specimens for collection.
(c) In addition to submitting specimens for chemical testing as provided in this section, a person may also submit specimens for chemical testing administered to him or her by a medical professional of his or her own choosing. The failure or inability of the person to obtain additional specimens or chemical tests shall not preclude the admission of chemical tests results that were the product of the law enforcement officer’s request under this section.
(d) Before collecting specimens for chemical testing, the law enforcement officer shall advise the operator of the motor vehicle about the requirements of this chapter.
