When an individual is stopped for suspicion of drunk driving they are often tested to see if they are in fact under the influence of drugs and alcohol. Most of these tests are for initial screenings and concrete results usually come in the form of blood or urine testing. One of the most common methods of testing is the breath alcohol test, which requires an individual to blow a breath sample into a machine that measures the alcohol content of an individual's breath.
Breath analyzing machines such as the Intoxilyzer and the Breathalyzer often use technology such as infrared spectrometry and fuel cell technology to measure the alcohol levels in a person's breath. The models that use infrared spectrometry are most commonly used for evidential breath testing and the models that use fuel cell based testing are mainly used for preliminary testing at the scene when an individual is pulled over for suspicion of driving under the influence or DUI.
The way these two technologies work is very scientific, but to summarize, Infrared spectrometry works by measuring the wavelength of ethyl alcohol, the substance that is in alcoholic beverages and electrochemical fuel cell technology basically works by turning alcohol into an electric current.
Because these breath analyzers are mere machines, its results are not always 100 percent accurate and false readings can happen. An issue with breath analyzing machines is that they not only identify the ethyl alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, but they also identify other substances that have the similar molecular structure of ethyl alcohol.
Factors that could trigger a positive reading from an Intoxilyzer, even though an individual might not have been drinking, can include a person's diet, the surrounding air temperature, occupational substances. For instance, a person who works daily around substances such as paint or cleaning products an inadvertently inhales them, can blow a breath test that will register as if they have been drinking. Additionally, dieters and diabetics can have extremely elevated acetone levels, which is a substance that can be falsely identified as ethyl alcohol by some breath machines.
Just because you have blown a breath test that was positive for alcohol does not mean that you will be automatically convicted of a DUI offense. Many times a simple error committed by the arresting officer is enough to have a DUI case against you dismissed or reduced. Additionally, faulty equipment that that hasn't been properly maintained can malfunction and give improper readings.
Your experienced criminal defense will look for factors such as these to help build a solid defense against a serious DUI allegation. Your criminal defense attorney will examine the particulars of your case and find mitigating circumstances that could potentially have your charges reduced or dismissed.
Mark Germain is a criminal defense attorney at The Law Office of Germain and Coulter in Melbourne, Florida. He has represented numerous men and women that were facing a DU I charge as the result of a faulty breath test. Mark Germain encourages individuals who have taken a breath test and charged with DUI to contact an experienced criminal defense lawyer to examine the possibilities of error. For more information please visit our site: Melbourne DUI attorney.
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