DUI Blood Testing
In every Michigan DUI case the law requires you to either submit to a breathalyzer test at the police station, or have your blood drawn at a local hospital. This evidence will then be used to prove that you are guilty of violating Michigan’s DUI laws. Without proof that your BAC was 0.08 or higher, the prosecutor will have a difficult time proving beyond a reasonable doubt that your are guilty of a Michigan drunk driving.
One of the best ways to keep the prosecution from winning is to keep the chemical evidence out. That’s just what a judge recently did, and it’s what helped the Illinois judge beat the DUI charges pending against him.
Following an arrest made in April 2008, former Lake County Chief Judge David Hall was taken to a Libertyville hospital for a blood sample. The results came back as 0.10 percent, over the legal limit. However, proper medical protocols were not followed. Judge F. Keith Brown, who ruled over Hall’s case, did not allow the blood test results at trial. While it did prove he was intoxicated while driving, Judge Brown barred the results from being admitted as evidence. “The sample should have been tested at the hospital where the blood was drawn, rather than at the Illinois State Police crime laboratory, where it was analyzed about 2 ½ weeks after Hall’s arrest. (Dan Rozek)
Your freedom and independence undoubtedly is extremely important to you and your family. So before you decide on which attorney you want to represent you on your drunk driving case, research the lawyer’s background on the different types of BAC testing. Your attorney should be highly qualified and knowledgeable in these areas.
Get a FREE confidential CASE EVALUATION on your Michigan OWI/OWVI/DUI by calling (248) 306-9159 , or filling out this consultation request form. Call now, there’s no obligation!
This post was written by...
baronedefensefirm – who has written 203 posts on Michigan DUI and License Restoration Lawyers.
Patrick T. Barone is the author on two books on DUI defense including the well respected two volume treatise Defending Drinking Drivers (James Publishing), and The DUI Book – A Citizen’s Guide to Understanding DUI Litigation in America. He is also the author of a monthly DUI defense column for the Criminal Defense Newsletter, published by Michigan’s State Appellate Defender’s Office. Mr. Barone is an adjunct professor at the Thomas M. Cooley Law School where he teaches Drunk Driving Law and Practice. He is also on the faculty of the Criminal Defense Attorney’s of Michigan’s Trial Lawyer’s College where he provides trial skills training to Michigan’s criminal defense practitioners. Mr. Barone lectures nationally on various DUI defense topics, and he has appeared in newspapers, on television and on radio as a drunk driving defense expert. Mr. Barone has been certified as an instructor and practitioner of the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests and has also attended a 24-hour certification course at National Patent Analytical Corporation (the manufacturer of the DataMaster) and has thereby been deemed competent by the manufacturer to operate, perform essential diagnostic verifications and calibration checks on the DataMaster. Mr. Barone is a Sustaining Member of College for DUI Defense. Mr. Barone is the principal and founding member of The Barone Defense Firm, whose practice is limited exclusively to defending drinking drivers. The Firm is headquartered in Birmingham, Michigan.
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If you are pulled over for a headlight out, suspected of drinking because you are 17 and it’s 2:30 in the morning, pass the field sobriety test but blow a .08, then are taken to the hospital for a blood draw and the blood comes back months later and shows .08 BAC plus THC, can they prosecute you for the THC as well?
Wow, that’s quite a story, and not an easy question to answer. There is no doubt that in Michigan OWI can be proved based on one of four theories, two of which involve drugs. These are OUID or operating under the influence of drugs, and OWPD, or operating with the presence of drugs. But just because a charge can be brought does not mean there is or is not a defense. You will need to call my office to discuss this further, or if you have a lawyer already, discuss this with him or her. More information will be be required to properly answer your question and protect your rights. If your lawyer doesn’t know the answer they can find it in one of my books or elsewhere on this web site. Good luck!
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