- May 19, 2018 |
- Category: DUI Testing
Preliminary Breath Testing or Portable Breath Testing (PBT) is a tool that some Ohio law enforcement agencies utilize in the DUI detection process. The PBT is a breath testing device that some officers keep in their cruiser. Usually, the DUI suspect is not yet under arrest when asked to submit to the preliminary breath test. Instead, the officers uses the results to make the decision whether to arrest. Before administering a PBT, officers are trained to first go through the three phases of DUI detection, including field sobriety testing. After all that is complete, if the officer believes the DUI suspect is impaired by alcohol, he will ask the driver to take the PBT in an effort to confirm that alcohol is the cause of the impairment.
The PBT provides direct indication of the DUI suspect’s BAC level. Keep in mind, however, it does not indicate the level of the DUI suspect’s impairment since impairment varies widely among individuals with the same BAC level. The PBT result is only one of many factors the officer is trained to consider in determining whether the suspect should be arrested for DUI. Officers are trained not to rely on a preliminary breath test because they are often inaccurate and the result are not admissible at trial in an Ohio DUI case.
Despite its limitations, preliminary breath testing provides the officer with a little more evidence in the DUI detection process. It may: (a) corroborate other evidence gathered by the officer to confirm his suspicion of alcohol consumption by the DUI suspect; (b) reveal the possibility of medical complications or impairment due to drugs other than alcohol; and (c) help to establish probable cause for a DUI arrest.
Preliminary breath testing has evidentiary and accuracy limitations. In Ohio DUI cases, PBT results are NOT admissible as evidence in trial because they simply aren’t that accurate. There are two common factors that tend to produce high results on a PBT. The first is residual mouth alcohol. After a person takes a drink that contains alcohol, some of the alcohol will remain in his mouth even after he swallows. If the DUI suspect exhales soon after drinking, the PBT will detect some of the left-over mouth alcohol. In this situation, the breath sample will contain an additional amount of alcohol and the test result will be much higher than the true BAC.
It takes approximately 15 minutes for the residual alcohol to be eliminated from the mouth. As a result, officers are required to ensure the DUI suspect doesn’t consume any alcohol for twenty minutes before conducting a breath test. In addition to intentional consumption of alcohol, some DUI suspects ingest alcohol unintentionally. Most mouthwashes, breath sprays, cough syrups, and other items contain alcohol and may produce residual mouth alcohol. As a result, police in Ohio are supposed to ensure a suspect doesn’t put ANYTHING in their mouth for twenty minutes prior to the test.
Another factor that leads to inaccurate results with preliminary breath tests are breath contaminants. Some preliminary breath testing devices react to substances other than alcohol. For example, substances such as ether, chloroform, acetone, acetaldehyde and cigarette smoke may produce a positive result on certain devices. If so, the test result would be higher than the DUI suspect’s true BAC. The PBT has other accuracy limitations as well. For example, radio frequency interference (RFI) can produce either high or low-test results. RFI can also prevent a preliminary breath testing machine from producing any result at all. For these and other reasons, PBT results are not admissible in an Ohio DUI trial.
No Ohio DUI arrest is perfect and a good DUI lawyer understands this. Most Ohio DUI investigations include a number of witnesses, including police officers who administer field sobriety testing and give portable breath tests. These witnesses are human and they make mistakes. Those mistakes can be utilized in building a defense to a DUI charge and potentially be leveraged into a dismissal or reduction of all charges.
There are over a million laws in the United States and thousands in the state of Ohio alone. I am a top Ohio DUI lawyer who focuses his entire practice on just one. Because of my considerable experience and concentrated practice, I understand the Ohio DUI laws better than most attorneys in the state. I am passionate about Ohio DUI defense and I get results. If you have an Ohio DUI case and want a top Ohio DUI lawyer on your team, please give me a call.
