How Long Island Criminal Defense Lawyers Challenge Breathalyzer Test Results

How Long Island Criminal Defense Lawyers Challenge Breathalyzer Test Results

Being charged with a DWI or DUI is scary. Even if you feel confident you weren’t actually impaired, the reading on those little breathalyzer machines can seem like damning evidence. But experienced Long Island criminal defense lawyers know that breathalyzer results aren’t always as clear-cut as they seem. Read on to learn about some of the ways we fight inaccurate breath test results in court.

The Legal Limit Isn’t as Clear as You’d Think

Most people assume the “legal limit” for blood alcohol content (BAC) is .08. And it’s true that in New York, having a BAC at or above .08 percent is per se evidence of intoxication. But the reality is more complicated than that.

For one thing, the legal limit actually depends on what you’re doing. The limit is lower – .04 percent – for commercial drivers. And there is no defined threshold for intoxication when it comes to boating or aviation.

So what does this mean in terms of breathalyzer results? Well, say you get pulled over on suspicion of DWI and blow a .09. That would seem to be an open-and-shut case. But an experienced DWI lawyer may be able to get that charge reduced or even dismissed by arguing there is reasonable doubt you were truly impaired. We’d point out things like your driving pattern, performance on field sobriety tests, and other indications you weren’t dangerously drunk despite having a BAC over the per se limit.

Breath Tests Have a Built-In Margin of Error

Portable roadside breathalyzers, like those police carry during traffic stops, have a notoriously high margin of error. The results can be thrown off by all kinds of factors, ranging from improper calibration to medical conditions you may have.

Even the more advanced breath testing machines used at police stations aren’t foolproof. New York’s legal limit of .08 is meant to take into account the margin of error in chemical breath testing devices. So if you blow a .09 at the station, a good DUI defense attorney can argue that your true BAC was likely below the legal threshold.

We Can Challenge the Testing Methods That Were Used

Breathalyzer machines have to be properly calibrated and operated in order to generate court-admissible results. Police officers also have to follow all the right protocols when administering roadside or stationhouse breath tests.

As your legal advocates, Long Island DWI lawyers dig deep into the testing procedures used in your case. If anything was amiss – the machine wasn’t calibrated right, the officer didn’t wait the required observation period before testing, etc. – we can get those breath results thrown out.

For example, in New York the testing machine has to have been calibrated within the previous year in order to be considered valid. If the unit used in your case was overdue for calibration, we can likely suppress the breath test results on that basis.

Your Body Chemistry Can Affect the Results

Breathalyzer machines work by estimating a person’s blood alcohol level through the amount of alcohol vapor in their breath. But the reality is that breath alcohol doesn’t always exactly correlate with blood alcohol concentration.

Things like medical conditions (diabetes, acid reflux, etc.), as well as normal variation in body temperature and breathing patterns, can throw off BAC estimates from breath tests. As your criminal defense team, we thoroughly investigate your health history, drinking patterns, and other personal variables that could have impacted your individual breath test results.

Independent Testing Is an Option

In drunk driving cases involving a breath test over .08, New York law gives the defendant the right to additional chemical testing by a physician of their choosing. We advise clients to take advantage of this whenever possible.

Independent blood, urine, or repeat breath tests are often invaluable in fighting breathalyzer readings that seem to clearly incriminate you. Say you blow a .10 at the station, but a blood test performed by your doctor shortly after shows a BAC of only .06. That kind of discrepancy can create the reasonable doubt needed to beat the charges.

As you can see, breathalyzers aren’t the definitive evidence of intoxication they’re often made out to be. An experienced DWI defense attorney knows all the problems with these machines as well as the many ways we can challenge their results in court. So if you’ve been arrested for drunk driving and failed a breath test, don’t lose hope. Call us to start building your defense today.

https://dmv.ny.gov/alcohol-drug-use

https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/new-york-dui-dwi-laws.html

https://www.avvo.com/legal-guides/ugc/boating-under-the-influence-in-new-york

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3078013/

https://codes.findlaw.com/ny/vehicle-and-traffic-law/vat-sect-1195.html

https://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/VAT/1194

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3078013/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3078013/

https://codes.findlaw.com/ny/vehicle-and-traffic-law/vat-sect-1194.html