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“Refusing the blood test after a wedding?” — Radu’s 1 A.M. crossroads, explained with the actual Romanian rules

Using Radu’s late-night traffic stop as a case study, the article sets out your three real options: cooperate with testing, refuse or try to delay – and what each means legally. It explains when you are “only” in contravention territory, when you cross into a criminal offence, and why the refusal itself is punished even if no precise alcohol level is ever proven.

Snapshot (so you can decide fast):

  • > 0.80 g/l alcohol in blood = crime under Art. 336 Penal Code (driving under the influence). ≤ 0.80 g/l = contravention under the Road Traffic Ordinance (OUG 195/2002). (Codurile Penale)
  • If the roadside device shows > 0.40 mg/l in breath, or if you refuse/cannot blow, the police must order biological sampling (blood/other) — and you must comply. (Portal Legislativ)
  • Refusing biological sampling (blood etc.) is itself a separate crime: Art. 337 Penal Code, penalty 1–5 years. This provision is constitutional and applied in practice. (Sintact)
  • Sampling follows medical-legal Norms (two vials, clinical exam notes, chain of custody), updated in March 2024 by the Ministry of Health. (Lege5)
  • For 0.01–0.40 mg/l in breath the usual outcome is fine + licence suspension (typically 90 days), not a criminal record. (Poliția Română)

1) The scene

It’s 1:00 A.M. after a wedding. Radu is pulled over, blows into the roadside device, and gets a borderline reading. The officer says: “We’re going to the hospital for biological samples.” Radu wonders: “If I refuse now, can they prove anything?”
Under Romanian law, that refusal itself would be a crime (Art. 337). The smarter decision point is earlier: cooperate with lawful sampling and let the numbers decide whether you’re facing a contravention or a crime. (Sintact)

2) What the law actually says (accurate thresholds & who can order what)

A) Criminal vs contraventional thresholds

  • Criminal offence (Art. 336 CP): Driving a vehicle when biological samples later show > 0.80 g/l alcohol in blood, or when you drive under the influence of psychoactive substances. (Codurile Penale)
  • Contravention (OUG 195/2002): When the breath reading is between 0.01 and 0.40 mg/l alcohol per litre of exhaled air (typical sanction: fine + suspension). Exact sanctions are in the Road Traffic Ordinance and the Regulation. (Poliția Română)

B) When sampling is mandatory

Police must send you for biological sampling (and you must comply) if:

  1. the roadside device reads > 0.40 mg/l breath alcohol;
  2. the roadside drug screen indicates psychoactive substances;
  3. you refuse or cannot take the roadside test;
  4. you were involved in an injury/fatal accident and there’s a positive breath reading, even ≤ 0.40 mg/l. (Portal Legislativ)

C) Refusal of biological sampling is a separate crime

Art. 337 Penal Code punishes “refusal or evasion from the prelevare de mostre biologice” (biological sampling) by any driver (also includes instructors/examiners during practical exams). Penalty: 1–5 years. The Constitutional Court upheld clarity and foreseeability of this rule. (Sintact)

Key nuance: The Penal Code criminalizes refusal of biological samples, not the roadside breath test itself. In practice, refusing to blow only triggers the obligation to go for biological sampling — which you must not refuse. If you do, that’s Art. 337. (Portal Legislativ)

3) How sampling actually happens (forms, vials, timing)

Romania uses medical-legal Norms (Minister of Health Order no. 1512/2013), updated via Order no. 1252/2024. They specify:

  • Two blood vials for alcohol, typically one hour apart (the second may be omitted in limited situations; if only one vial is taken, retroactive estimation can’t be performed). (Lege5)
  • A clinical exam sheet must be filled out; the updated 2024 Order re-approved the standard request and clinical forms and clarifies where urgent sampling can be done (ER units, legal medicine institutes, or even in ambulances with a physician). (Portal Legislativ)
  • Determination of alcohol concentration and psychoactive substances is done by legal medicine institutes. (Portal Legislativ)

4) Radu’s three real options (and their legal outcomes)

Option 1 — Cooperate with biological sampling

  • If final blood result is ≤ 0.80 g/l, you’re in contravention land: fine + licence suspension (commonly 90 days); no criminal record. (Poliția Română)
  • If > 0.80 g/l, you face Art. 336 (crime). Still, documentation and proper chain of custody matter for your defence. (Codurile Penale)

Option 2 — Refuse biological sampling

  • That is itself the offence in Art. 337 (1–5 years). Courts apply it even when authorities can’t later prove the exact alcohol level, because the refusal is the conduct criminalized. The Constitutional Court confirmed the article’s constitutionality. (Sintact)

Option 3 — Accept blood sampling but decline the breath test

  • This is not the Art. 337 offence. The police will simply order biological sampling and you must comply. The lawful proof for Art. 336 is the blood result; roadside breath is preliminary. (Portal Legislativ)

5) Special situations you should know

  • Drug cases: A positive roadside drug screen (or refusal/cannot blow) requires biological sampling; driving under the influence of psychoactive substances is criminal under Art. 336(2). (Portal Legislativ)
  • Crashes with injuries/death: Even with a positive ≤ 0.40 mg/l breath reading, biological sampling becomes mandatory. (Portal Legislativ)
  • Don’t drink after the crash: The law expressly forbids consuming alcohol/drugs after an accident until testing/sampling is done. (Portal Legislativ)
  • Updated medical paperwork (2024): New templates for the toxicology request and clinical exam are in force; they’re part of the case file and sometimes decisive in court. (Portal Legislativ)

6) Practical playbook at the roadside & hospital

  1. Stay cooperative and ask what exactly is requested: roadside test, medical exam, biological sampling. If told to provide biological samples, comply (this is the legal pivot). (Portal Legislativ)
  2. If the breath reading is low (≤ 0.10 mg/l), you may request a second breath test after ~15–20 minutes; the lower value is considered. This doesn’t replace blood when blood is mandatory, but can matter in contraventional scenarios. (AvocatNet)
  3. At the hospital: ensure the request form is filled; confirm two vials if indicated by norms; request that clinical signs are recorded (they must be when sampling occurs). Keep copies or note identifiers. (Portal Legislativ)
  4. Medical exceptions: If a second vial cannot be collected for medical reasons, that must be recorded; without two vials, retroactive estimation generally isn’t possible. (Spitalul Municipal Timișoara)
  5. For drugs: biological sampling is obligatory once the roadside screen is positive or if you refused/couldn’t be tested; do not ingest anything after the stop. (Portal Legislativ)

7) Myths vs. the file you’ll actually face

  • “If I refuse, they can’t prove alcohol.”
    They don’t need to — they’ll charge the refusal (Art. 337). Courts consistently uphold this. (Sintact)
  • “Refusing breath means I’m safe.”
    No. Refusing breath triggers the obligation for blood sampling, which you must not refuse. (Portal Legislativ)
  • “One sample is enough, always.”
    The norms are built around two vials (about one hour apart) for alcohol; omitting the second restricts retroactive calculations, unless medically justified. (Lege5)

8) Defence angles that sometimes matter (for lawyers & meticulous readers)

  • Was the order lawful and clear? Art. 337 requires a lawful request to submit to biological sampling. If the record only shows a dispute about the breath device, check whether a biological sampling order actually followed. (Portal Legislativ)
  • Procedural compliance: Missing or sloppy toxicology request forms, lack of clinical exam sheet, or deviations from the Norms can undermine reliability. The 2024 Order standardized these documents — use that to audit the file. (Portal Legislativ)
  • Medical impossibility / exceptions (fainting, contraindications) should be written in the medical forms; they are different from “refusal”. (Spitalul Municipal Timișoara)

9) Bottom line for “after the wedding” cases

  • If you’re borderline, cooperate with lawful biological sampling. Below 0.80 g/l blood, you’re likely at fine + suspension rather than a criminal record; above it, you’re in Art. 336 territory. Refusing sampling turns a maybe-contravention into a certain crime under Art. 337. (Codurile Penale)

Sources you can verify quickly

  • Penal Code — Art. 336 & 337 (official or consolidated views). (Codurile Penale)
  • OUG 195/2002 (mandatory sampling when >0.40 mg/l breath, refusal/cannot blow, positive drug screen, or crash with victims). (Portal Legislativ)
  • Minister of Health Order 1512/2013 & Order 1252/2024 (how sampling is performed; forms; clinical exam). (Lege5)
  • Police/Judicial practice notes (contravention ranges; typical 90-day suspension). (Poliția Română)
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