Supreme Court Refuses to Hear Appeal of DUI Case

 Posted on June 15, 2014 in DUI

The Supreme Court of the United States Of America recently decided not to take up the appeal of a DUI decision, that had been handed by a California court.

The decision was handed down in Vangelder versus California, and the crux of the defense was the breath test performed just before the arrest. Vangelder had been arrested for DUI after a breath test. At the trial, attorneys for the defendant brought in an expert, who said that testing machines were unreliable because they tended to measure the alcohol content in the wrong part of the breath. They didn't measure the alcohol content in the deeper part of the air, which is closer to the bloodstream, and therefore, readings from the testing machines were unreliable.

The defense however didn't work, and the man was convicted. The man appealed, and the California State Court ruled against him again. When the matter went to the Supreme Court of the United States Of America, the Court decided to not take up the appeal at all.

However, that doesn't mean that the breath test defense or the breathalyzer defense does not work. In many cases, people are wrongfully arrested for DUI because of malfunctioning, defective or improperly calibrated breathalyzers. The strategy of blaming the breath testing machines as a whole and criticizing the science behind the testing machines will probably not be used as legal defense much anymore. However, blood test results can still be used to prove that the test was wrongly administered, leading to higher readings.

If you have been arrested for DUI, you face possibly serious penalties, including a jail term, and license suspension. Speak with a DUI attorney at our firm immediately.