Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/12pdf/11-1425_cb8e.pdf
Page Number: 33

4 

MISSOURI v. MCNEELY 

Opinion of ROBERTS, C. J. 

cused.  Tyler, supra, at 509.  The question here is whether 
and  how  this  principle  applies  in  the  typical  case  of  a 
police  officer  stopping  a  driver  on  suspicion  of  drunk 
driving. 

II
 
A 

The  reasonable  belief  that  critical  evidence  is  being 
destroyed  gives  rise  to  a  compelling  need  for  blood  draws
in  cases  like  this  one.  Here,  in  fact,  there  is  not  simply
a  belief  that  any  alcohol  in  the  bloodstream  will  be  de-
stroyed; it is a biological certainty.  Alcohol dissipates from
the bloodstream at a rate of 0.01 percent to 0.025 percent 
per  hour.  Stripp,  Forensic  and  Clinical  Issues  in  Alcohol 
Analysis,  in  Forensic  Chemistry  Handbook  440  (L.  Kobil-
insky ed. 2012).  Evidence is literally disappearing by the 
minute.  That certainty makes this case an even stronger
one than usual for application of the exigent circumstances 
exception.

And  that  evidence  is  important.  A  serious  and  deadly 
crime is at issue.  According to the Department of Trans-
portation,  in  2011,  one  person  died  every  53  minutes  due 
to drinking and driving.  National Highway Traffic Safety 
Admin.  (NHTSA),  Traffic  Safety  Facts,  2011  Data  1  (No.
811700,  Dec.  2012).  No  surprise  then  that  drinking  and 
driving is punished severely, including with jail time.  See 
generally Dept. of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, L. 
Maruschak, Special Report, DWI Offenders under Correc-
tional Supervision (1999).  McNeely, for instance, faces up
to  four  years  in  prison.    See  App.  22–23  (citing  Mo.  Ann.
Stat. §§558.011, 577.010, 577.023 (West 2011)). 

Evidence of a driver’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC)
is  crucial  to  obtain  convictions  for  such  crimes.    All  50 
States  and  the  District  of  Columbia  have  laws  providing 
that it is per se illegal to drive with a BAC of 0.08 percent
or  higher.  Most  States  also  have  laws  establishing  addi-