West Virginia § 17C-5-5 Preliminary analysis of breath to determine alcoholic content of blood

West Virginia Statutes

§ 17C-5-5 — Preliminary analysis of breath to determine alcoholic content of blood

West Virginia § 17C-5-5

Ch. 17CTRAFFIC REGULATIONS AND LAWS OF THE ROAD

Art. 5SERIOUS TRAFFIC OFFENSES

This text of West Virginia § 17C-5-5 (Preliminary analysis of breath to determine alcoholic content of blood) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering West Virginia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook

W. Va. Code § 17C-5-5 (2026).

Text

When a law-enforcement officer has reason to believe a person has committed an offense prohibited by section two of this article or by an ordinance of a municipality of this state which has the same elements as an offense described in said section two of this article, the law-enforcement officer may require such person to submit to a preliminary breath analysis for the purpose of determining such person's blood alcohol content. Such breath analysis must be administered as soon as possible after the law-enforcement officer has a reasonable belief that the person has been driving while under the influence of alcohol, controlled substances or drugs. Any preliminary breath analysis required under this section must be administered with a device and in a manner approved by the department of heal

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When a law-enforcement officer has reason to believe a person has committed an offense prohibited by section two of this article or by an ordinance of a municipality of this state which has the same elements as an offense described in said section two of this article, the law-enforcement officer may require such person to submit to a preliminary breath analysis for the purpose of determining such person's blood alcohol content. Such breath analysis must be administered as soon as possible after the law-enforcement officer has a reasonable belief that the person has been driving while under the influence of alcohol, controlled substances or drugs. Any preliminary breath analysis required under this section must be administered with a device and in a manner approved by the department of health for that purpose. The results of a preliminary breath analysis shall be used solely for the purpose of guiding the officer in deciding whether an arrest should be made. When a driver is arrested following a preliminary breath analysis, the tests as hereinafter provided in this article shall be administered in accordance with the provisions thereof.