Refusal Offense/Presumption, Refusal of tests; procedures

A. When a person is arrested for a violation of §§ 18.2-51.4, 18.2-266, 18.2-266.1 or § 18.2-272 or of a similar ordinance the arresting officer shall advise the person, from a form described in subsection B, that (i) a person who operates a motor vehicle upon a public highway in the Commonwealth is deemed thereby, as a condition of such operation, to have consented to have samples of his blood and breath taken for chemical tests to determine the alcohol or drug content of his blood, (ii) a finding of unreasonable refusal to consent may be admitted as evidence at a criminal trial, (iii) that the unreasonable refusal to do so constitutes grounds for the revocation of the privilege of operating a motor vehicle upon the highways of the Commonwealth, (iv) the criminal penalty for unreasonable refusal within 10 years of a prior conviction for driving while intoxicated or unreasonable refusal is a Class 2 misdemeanor, and (v) the criminal penalty for unreasonable refusal within 10 years of any two prior convictions for driving while intoxicated or unreasonable refusal is a Class 1 misdemeanor.

B. The form from which the arresting officer shall advise the person arrested shall be provided by the Office of the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court and shall contain a brief statement of the law requiring the taking of blood or breath samples, that a finding of unreasonable refusal to consent may be admitted as evidence at a criminal trial, and the penalties for refusal, a declaration of refusal, and an acknowledgment of the arresting officer that he has read the form to the defendant and a line for the signature of the arresting officer. The form shall be signed by the arresting officer and the arresting officer shall acknowledge before the magistrate that the form was read to the person arrested. The magistrate or arresting officer shall also certify that for a second offense committed within 10 years of any prior conviction for unreasonable refusal or driving while intoxicated the punishment is a Class 2 misdemeanor, and that for a third offense committed within 10 years of any two prior convictions for unreasonable refusal or driving while intoxicated the punishment is a Class 1 misdemeanor. The magistrate shall promptly issue a warrant or summons charging the person with a violation of subsection A and shall attach the executed advisement form to the warrant or summons. The magistrate or arresting officer, as the case may be, shall forward the executed advisement and warrant or summons to the appropriate court. The warrant or summons for a first offense under this section shall be executed in the same manner as criminal warrants or summonses. If the person has been taken to a medical facility for treatment or evaluation of his medical condition, the arresting officer at a medical facility may issue, on the premises of the medical facility, a summons for a violation of subsection A in lieu of securing a warrant.

C. Unreasonable refusal is a violation of this section and shall be an offense punishable as set forth in §§ 18.2-268.3 and 18.2-268.4. Venue for the trial of the warrant or summons shall lie in the court of the county or city in which the offense of driving under the influence of intoxicants is to be tried.