The Breath Test
Challenging the Breath Test Evidence
The results of a breath test can sometimes be challenged in court and legally suppressed from evidence. For instance, the Intoxilyzer results may be inaccurate or unreliable due to improper maintenance, calibration, or a lapse in certification for the machine or the operator’s permit. Inaccurate Intoxilyzer readings could be caused by such things as burping or belching, the failure of law enforcement to properly observe you for a 20 minute period prior to breath testing, or the lack of proper training on the part of the breath test operator.
Breath test results can be excluded as evidence by your Pinellas County Court Judge if he finds that your decision to submit a breath sample was coerced or made under duress. Florida law requires a showing that your decision to submit a breath sample into the Intoxilyzer machine was made freely and voluntarily in order for the results to be admissible in court.
Securing the Intoxilyzer Maintenance Documents
Our office can secure the documents associated with the Intoxilyzer machine used in your case for a thorough evaluation in determining whether all administrative rules and state statutes were complied with. Any substantial deviation from the correct procedures set forth in Florida law could provide a sufficient basis to have your breath test results thrown out. Depriving the prosecutor of this key piece of evidence could significantly change the complexion of your case and strengthen our negotiating position.
Our Library of Intoxilyzer Records
Attorney Timothy Sullivan maintains an extensive library of records associated with every intoxilyzer used in Pinellas County. These include machines owned by the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office, St. Petersburg Police Department, Clearwater Police Department, Treasure Island Police Department, Largo Police Department, Kenneth City Police Department, Pinellas Park Police Department, Gulfport Police Department, Tarpon Springs Police Department and those machines formerly owned by the now defunct St. Pete Beach Police Department.
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