On today’s radio show I said that all positive alcohol breath tests must be confirmed with a blood test before a conviction is reported.
Apparently, this is a thing of the past. As of about a year ago, all blood alcohol readings are the result of breath tests.
That is, now in every case, if you are convicted of a prescribed content of alcohol in your blood, it is the result of a breath test only, and no longer does one have the option of asking for a blood test.
Unless new technology has emerged recently, this surprises me, as roadside breath units are fuel cells and are nowhere near as accurate or foolproof as blood tests using a gas chromatograph.
Anyhow, I am attempting to get in touch with the police and look into it, specifically with regard to the technical details of the tests and how they are able to accurately correlate breath alcohol with blood alcohol.
I’ll keep you posted.