Posted by duijim in on October 19, 2023
If the police suspect you of DUI, they may request you take a portable breath test (PBT), such as Alco-Sensor. If the test shows overage of alcohol consumption, arrest may ensue.
However, the PBT machine used at DUI courts may not be as precise and there may be valid challenges against its accuracy that your DUI lawyer can use against it in court.
Breath Tests
As soon as an individual suspected of driving under the influence is stopped by police and approached for questioning on the road, an officer will request they submit to a breath test. While individuals can decline, should they later be arrested for DUI they will likely have to submit to chemical breath testing at the police station due to Georgia’s implied consent laws requiring chemical breath tests at all arresting facilities.
An individual with a blood alcohol concentration level above the legal limit of 0.088% may be charged with driving while intoxicated. An experienced Atlanta DUI lawyer can use several tactics to challenge these tests and have them suppressed or dismissed outright in court proceedings.
First and foremost, breath testing machines can be highly inaccurate pieces of equipment. Even the Intoxilyzer 5000 used by law enforcement in Georgia contains numerous flaws which provide defense lawyers an opportunity to disprove an arrestee’s case, such as changing air temperatures, mouth washes with alcohol content or physical conditions such as acid reflux.
Furthermore, the breath test may have been administered incorrectly. For instance, an individual’s ability to produce a clean breath sample may have been compromised by machines that weren’t maintained or calibrated properly or electrical issues during testing.
Officers may ask suspects to undergo blood tests instead of breath tests as this method may provide more accurate measurements of an individual’s BAC level in their body. Unfortunately, blood tests have their own set of issues which could serve as strong DUI defense arguments.
Georgia law strictly forbids anyone charged with DUI from actually driving their car at the time. Therefore, someone who drinks too much at a bar and then sits inside their vehicle with engine running but no actual motion occurring cannot be charged with drunk driving as that would violate Georgia laws by being physically in control of a moving vehicle.
Blood Tests
If you are stopped and asked to take a breath test and blow over the legal limit, you will be arrested for DUI in Georgia. Under Georgia’s Implied Consent law, anyone operating a motor vehicle automatically gives consent for chemical tests to measure their BAC (blood alcohol content). Of course, you have every right to refuse these tests and your Atlanta DUI lawyer should be familiar with equipment like Intoxilyzer as well as ways the results can be challenged.
If an officer suspects you of being under the influence of alcohol or drugs based on indicators like an odor of alcohol, slurred speech or failed field sobriety tests, they may request a blood sample from you for testing. They can also obtain a search warrant in case of an emergency requiring immediate blood analysis (for instance a serious accident with injuries or death).
Georgia law sets the per se DUI limit at 0.08% or greater; any BAC of this level indicates driving under the influence of alcohol; however, other evidence of impairment can refute this presumption.
An effective DUI defense strategy must take into account physiological differences among test takers, physical conditions at testing times and locations, maintenance and calibration of Intoxilyzer machines months in advance and any newer machines available, creating another avenue of attack for your Atlanta Georgia DUI attorney.
There are numerous factors that could skew breath test accuracy and results, such as mouthwash and cough syrup use, medical conditions, environmental influences and the type of car being driven. Your Atlanta DUI lawyer must be aware of these issues and possess the resources and connections to bring in experts to examine both the testing equipment as well as results to demonstrate they are unreliable and should not be admitted as evidence against you.
If you refuse a breath or blood test upon arrest, your license may be suspended immediately unless an administrative hearing request is filed within 30 days. An Atlanta DUI lawyer can assist with this request as well as help if found guilty.
Field Sobriety Tests
State breath alcohol test machines are extremely accurate, providing police officers with an accurate depiction of someone’s recent alcohol consumption and level of intoxication while they operate vehicles safely.
Breath tests may be affected by medications and medical conditions; testing equipment must also be regularly calibrated. An experienced Atlanta Georgia DUI attorney can review your case to identify any factors which might have had an effect on its results.
Field sobriety tests such as the horizontal gaze nystagmus (HGN) test and walk and turn and one leg stand test are designed to assist an officer in assessing your driving ability under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Unfortunately, these assessments are completely subjective, with police officers often believing you’re drunk prior to administering these exams and looking for evidence supporting that belief – leading them to make false positive results and arrest without probable cause.
Georgia law calls for implied consent that requires drivers to submit to chemical testing when police officers have reasonable grounds to believe you may be driving under the influence. If you refuse, your license will automatically be suspended for one year; before agreeing to take part, however, Miranda warning must first be read out and reasonable grounds must exist to suspect you of driving while impaired.
If you have been charged with DUI in Georgia and refused a breath or urine test, it is crucial that you contact an experienced DUI attorney as soon as possible. Under certain circumstances an administrative appeal of license suspension can be filed; an experienced DUI lawyer can guide this process with ease and ensure your rights are upheld throughout.
Administrative Hearings
After your arrest for DUI in Georgia, police will likely request that you undergo a chemical test. If you refuse or provide results that exceed legal limits, an administrative license suspension case will ensue, which is handled separately from criminal trials in state courts and can affect your driving privileges for up to one year. It’s crucial that either yourself or your lawyer request a hearing within 30 days to avoid being automatically suspended.
An Atlanta DUI lawyer can be your ally in successfully fighting an ALS case. They will examine evidence demonstrating reasonable grounds, probable cause and proper reading of Implied Consent warning. They’ll also look at circumstances around testing such as cough syrup or mouthwash that remains in your throat increasing your BAC; acid reflux creating alcohol-like compounds; plus ensure the machine itself is regularly calibrated and serviced before use.
At an Administrative License Suspension hearing (ALS), our Atlanta DUI lawyer will challenge the evidence supporting an officer’s decision to suspend your license. Here, the burden of proof is much lower; called “preponderance of evidence”, which requires them to prove you were driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol more likely than not.
If the officer fails to meet this low standard, you may be able to avoid suspension of your driving privileges and regain them – something especially helpful if driving is essential for work or medical appointments. In such a case, a restricted license could allow you to access work. If arrested for DUI in Georgia, contact us as soon as possible so wecan begin crafting a winning defense strategy immediately – our experience includes prosecuting DUI cases all across Georgia including Metro Atlanta and North Georgia for over 25 years!