How Reliable Are Alaska DUI Breath Tests
Reader’s Question:
I have heard a lot of stories questioning the reliability of a breath test in a DUI case. If I will be arrested for DUI in Alaska, how can the result of the breath test be excluded as evidence in a DUI case?
Brooke
Anchorage, AK
The use of the breath testing machines to obtain the blood alcohol content of a driver arrested for DUI has been widely criticized since law enforcement has employed the device in an effort to seek convictions for those suspected of DUI. Rationally, many safety standards have been put into place in order to attempt to minimize the number of innocent persons being convicted for DUI. So if you would be arrested for DUI in Alaska, there would be countless reasons that the court could rule to exclude ‘breath test evidence.’
It could be a ground for suppression of evidence if the breath test machine has not been calibrated because it needs to be regularly maintained and serviced to ensure accurate results. The breath test result could also be excluded if the police officer failed to observe the driver for a period of 20 minutes prior to administering the breath test. It would also constitute as a failure of legal procedure if the technician who performed the test is not properly certified and is not current with his/her educational requirements, thus breath test results should be excluded from the state’s evidence.
Does a Blood Alcohol Breath Test Work?
Reader’s Question:
What is the reliability of the breath test in Alaska?
George
Anchorage, AK
There is much debate on the breathalyzer in Alaska. Believers say that the breathalyzer will only read light absorbed by alcohol, while opponents state the machine often misreads other normally found substances in the breath as alcohol, thus giving an inaccurate high reading.
Neither the Department of Public Safety of Bryan nor the manufacturer of the machine will let anyone else other than the law enforcement to test the machine for its accuracy and reliability. It is normally understood that for a procedure to be accepted as accurate and reliable in science, it must be open and available for the scientists to test and retest the procedure. This is not permitted with this machine.
The maker of the machine does not give any warranty of the breathalyzer. It also does not give any warranty for the accuracy and reliability of breath testing. The breathalyzer is able to preserve breath samples, but the department of public safety does not preserve these samples. The cost of preserving breath samples is cheap and would allow arrested persons the opportunity to have their breath samples checked for accuracy. If found to be inaccurate, this could prevent an innocent person from being unfairly convicted. Additional re-testing of the breath sample could be done by a method known as gas chromatography. This method is more accurate and reliable method of testing breath samples for alcohol than the breathalyzer.