Did not breathe into the “Drager,” but still received a fine: was the driver able to appeal the 17 thousand fine and one year without a driver's license

The Kherson Court of Appeal reviewed the decision of the local court, which found the driver guilty of committing an administrative offense under part one of Article 130 of the Code of Ukraine on Administrative Offenses.

The court of first instance established that the driver operated a vehicle showing signs of alcohol intoxication – the smell of alcohol from the mouth, speech impairment, and lack of coordination. He refused to undergo an examination at the stop location using a special technical device or at a healthcare facility. The driver was fined 17,000 hryvnias and deprived of the right to drive vehicles for one year.

In the appeal, the defender stated that the vehicle was stopped without proper grounds, and the police allegedly violated the procedure for conducting the examination and effectively pressured the driver to refuse to undergo it.

After reviewing video recordings from police body cameras and the dashcam, the appellate court found that the vehicle was moving along an unstable trajectory and nearly collided with road barriers. Therefore, stopping the vehicle complied with paragraph 3 of part one of Article 35 of the Law of Ukraine "On the National Police."

The court also established that the police repeatedly offered the driver to undergo an examination at the stop location or at a healthcare facility, explained the procedure and consequences of refusal. The driver avoided giving a clear answer for a long time and later repeatedly refused to undergo the examination. The appellate court assessed this behavior as a conscious evasion of fulfilling the lawful requirement of the police officer.

The appellate court referred to paragraph 2.5 of the Traffic Rules, according to which the driver is obliged, at the request of a police officer, to undergo an examination in the prescribed manner to determine intoxication.

The procedure for detecting signs of alcohol, drug, or other intoxication in drivers is defined by Article 266 of the Code of Administrative Offenses, the Instruction "On the procedure for detecting signs of alcohol, drug, or other intoxication or being under the influence of medicinal products that reduce attention and reaction speed in drivers," approved by the joint order of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine and the Ministry of Health of Ukraine dated November 9, 2015, No. 1452/735, as well as the Procedure for sending drivers for examination to detect alcohol, drug, or other intoxication or being under the influence of medicinal products that reduce attention and reaction speed, and conducting such examination, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine resolution dated December 17, 2008, No. 1103.

The panel of judges emphasized that part one of Article 130 of the Code of Administrative Offenses provides liability not only for driving a vehicle while intoxicated but also for the driver’s refusal to undergo an examination according to the established procedure. Therefore, for qualifying the driver’s actions under this provision, confirmation of the actual intoxication state is not decisive – the established fact of refusal to undergo the examination is sufficient.

Based on the review, the appellate court concluded that the driver’s guilt is confirmed by a set of proper and admissible evidence, and no violations of substantive or procedural law were made by the local court. By the decision of the Kherson Court of Appeal dated 13.07.2026, the appeal was dismissed, and the decision of the Kherson City Court of Kherson Region dated 02.06.2026 was left unchanged.

Subscribe to our Telegram channel t.me/sudua and to Google News SUD.UA, as well as to our VIBER and WhatsApp, our page on Facebook and on Instagram to stay informed about the most important events.