Breathalyzers in Prince George’s County DUI Cases

If you were arrested for a DUI, you were probably asked to take a breathalyzer test at the police station. If your BAC was too high, you may be concerned that there is nothing you can do to defend yourself.

However, breathalyzers in Prince George’s County DUI cases have to follow strict protocols in order to be admissible in court. An experienced defense attorney could examine the evidence in your case and use any misconduct to your advantage in court. Call today to schedule a consultation.

Reliability of Breathalyzers

When considering reliability, it is important to understand that there are two variations of breathalyzers. There is the preliminary breath test, which is done by the side of the road before somebody is arrested. Those are relatively accurate, but not good enough where they can be used against a person in court. The breathalyzer at the police station is called the Intoximeter. That one is generally considered very accurate and is admissible as evidence of guilt in a trial.

At the police station, someone will take the Intoximeter test twice, and very rarely is the reading the same. However, police give the benefit of the lower of the two results and round it down to the nearest hundredth decimal. Sometimes, it could be a little bit high because it is not perfect. When someone is very close to the threshold of what is considered legal or illegal, there may be a challenge to the accuracy. However, if it is extremely high, the reliability is sufficient that even a slight variation is not going to help somebody.

False Positives and Inaccurate BAC Scores

There are some ways that Breathalyzers can result in false positives or inaccurately high BAC scores. There is an old misconception that something called mouth alcohol can affect the test, such as if someone drank recently or vomited. There are fail-safes in place to prevent this problem, such as the 20-minute observation period. Police are required to make sure the suspect does not eat or drink anything prior to the administration of the test.

There are physiological afflictions that can skew the test. For some people, alcohol is a naturally-occurring substance in the body. All humans have at least a small amount of alcohol, but some individuals have an overactive production and may register a higher-than-normal reading because of their natural body chemistry. If somebody has acid reflux, that could make the reading higher than it otherwise should be and skew the test.

Breathalyzer Calibration

Breathalyzers in Prince George’s County DUI cases need to be reliable, and the only way to do so is to establish that they have been regularly tested and calibrated. Very frequently in the trial process, police will send calibration records to defense attorneys just to view. If they do not provide them, lawyers can request them. As long as breathalyzers are regularly calibrated and updated, they are generally deemed to be reliable, and the result is admissible in trial.

Challenging BAC Results

In some instances, a skilled defense attorney can successfully challenge the admissibility of a breath result and thereby exclude it from evidence at trial. There are a variety of angles that can be taken. If the machine was not properly calibrated, an attorney could challenge its results in court. If the technician who was administering the test was not sufficiently qualified, an attorney could also use this fact to challenge the admissibility of the results. There is a certain protocol that has to be followed regarding the 20-minute observation period, and there is a requirement that the test be administered within two hours.

If any of those protocols are not followed, even if the test result is reliable, it is not admissible.

When to Contact a Prince George’s County Attorney

An individual is entitled to request to speak with an attorney before deciding on whether or not they should take the test. The difficulty is these often happen late at night or early in the morning, and most attorneys are not available. However, they will be given an opportunity to at least call an attorney or find an attorney before taking the test and should do so.

If you were charged with a DUI, you should seek experienced legal representation as soon as possible. An attorney who understands the role of breathalyzers in Prince George’s County DUI cases could analyze your case for any improper procedures and exploit them in court.