If you get arrested on drunk driving charges simply because the officer thinks you’re impaired, it may be clear to you that you can challenge that opinion. Maybe the officer gave you a field sobriety test, which you failed, but you contest that you were just fatigued and anxious, not drunk.
However, if you fail a breath test, then you may assume that you don’t have any options to challenge those results. The test shows that you were over the legal limit, so it’s not just the officer’s opinion that you were impaired.
The reality, though, is that you often can challenge your breath test results, and you need to know how to do it.
Did the officer make a mistake?
One tactic is to contest that the officer made a mistake while administering the test. Similarly, maybe they didn’t have the proper training, so they didn’t know how to administer the test correctly.
Was the test reliable?
The type of test used is very important. There are many consumer-grade breath tests that can’t be used in a court of law. Additionally, even with appropriate law enforcement breath tests, they need to be maintained and calibrated periodically. If the test was neglected and the officers didn’t stick to the calibration schedule, you can’t be sure that the results of that test were accurate.
Your legal options
These are just a few reasons why you may want to challenge the results of a breath test. The key is to remember that you always have legal defense options and a conviction is never guaranteed. Be sure you know what steps to take at this time.