Are Breathalyzers Irrefutable Proof Of A Person's Guilt For Driving Under The Influence?
When people hear the phrase drinking and driving, they know that the technological device behind getting a conviction is called the Breathalyzer.
This test is given to suspected drunk drivers to test their breath for alcohol. The "breath" alcohol content is changed over into a standardized formula to figure out the driver's "blood" alcohol content, which will actually tell how impaired a driver is, if at all.The Not So Fairness Of A Breathalyzer TestThe entire process looks very scientific, fair and impartial. However, the reality is that the process is that it's not scientific, fair or impartial. It's not at all scientific and doesn't rely on any on hand nor conventional science. It's not impartial because the results vary widely from one person to the next. And, it's not fair since some folks who really are not impaired are found guilty of a DUI while those who are dramatically impaired seem to elude detection.Of course, a blood test is the only true way to determine a person's BAC, which is more precise indicator of impairment. Put aside the fact that people react differently to alcohol in terms of tolerance and effect. The real issue is using the breath alcohol content to come up with an accurate measurement for blood alcohol content.According to peer reviews and uncontested studies, there was a 50 percent margin of error when test results from the breathalyzer for the blood alcohol content were compared to the precise blood alcohol content. Thus, a breathalyzer reading of .1 percent is a blood alcohol content number of.05 to.15 percent. As you can see, it's not a level of accuracy to base a person's guilt on.What State Legislatures Have Done In Their RashnessSome state legislatures, when confronted with this data, used their desire to expedite the results and get drunk drivers off the road, by granting the use "breath" alcohol content" test to be used like the "blood" alcohol content in a court of law. However, the error of using this like a "blood" alcohol test is criminal and a true error. After all, a "breath" alcohol test can only be a precise measurement of the air sample. It's not a true indicator for a person's "blood" alcohol content and is not an exact gauge of a person's impairment.Thus, breathalyzer readings should never be considered as evidence in a DUI case unless, of course, the reading was so high that it overcomes that 50 percent margin of error. Thus, a breathalyzer reading of .2 percent where a state has a.1 percent DWI threshold would be granted as proof for one's guilty of drive under the influence.If a breathalyzer reading is above the.1 percent and below the .2 percent threshold, it should be a rebuttable assumption of guilt. Anything below the.1 percent threshold should never be credible in proving a person's guilt for a DUI. Thus, "breath" alcohol content should never be considered as the precise measurement for a blood alcohol content or impairment.While it's understandable the court systems want to reduce the amount of deaths, injuries and property damage that comes from a person's drinking and driving, it doesn't excuse their rashness of implementing unjust laws that doesn't get accurate measurements. However, if standards, quantities and limits are included in those laws, they must be relevant to the person at that moment and correctly measured. If noted errors occur, the accused part should have the right to address them in their defense.
DUI Consequences.com provides all the state specific DUI Penalties for DUI/ drunk driving offenders. Get other valuable information on our website, including Breathalyzer Reading and other DUI related regulations in all the states.
