Articles Posted in Breathalyzer Test

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Just the other night Andrew Caron was with his friend Carl Fuller. Fuller was driving his father’s car. Apparently Fuller had loaned Caron the keys this past Saturday night. Supposedly Caron was sober at the time. Caron returned with a couple of girls, picked up Fuller and continued to drive the car. Fuller became concerned about Caron’s state of sobriety and tried to get him to pull over. Caron pulled the car over at which time he and Fuller struggled over the keys. A Salem, Massachusetts police officer witnessed the event and investigated. He asked Caron if he had been drinking. Caron told the officer that he had not been drinking. Fuller told the cop otherwise. Caron and Fuller continued their struggle and Caron was arrested. He now stands charged with OUI in the Salem District Court. A district court set bail at one thousand dollars cash.

Drunk Driving Charges For Salem Massachusetts Man

There are a few things defense lawyers would like to know about this case. For instance, did Caron take any field sobriety tests? Did he take a breathalzyer test? How was he operating at the time of the stop and who if anybody witnessed the driving? What did Caron do from the time he went to pick up the girls until he got back to pick up Fuller? How much time laspsed? All of these questions needs to be answered before anyone can effectively evaluate Caron’s case. The job of criminal defense lawyers is to do just that. Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of a defendant’s case and recommend how to best defend or resolve the case.

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Susan Belanger is really lucky and probably has a great lawyer. The 50 year old Pembroke, Massachusetts woman was arrested and charged with a Second Offense OUI. It was reported that cell phone callers observed Belanger driving erratically. The police were notified and observed some of Belanger’s driving pattern. She was followed to her home where she was confronted and ultimately arrested. She admitted to having only one glass of wine and was brought to the Pembroke Police Station where she requested a breathalyzer test. The machine was not working. Consequently she was taken to the Hanson Police Station but was not permitted to take a breathalyzer test there. A judge sitting in the Plymouth District Court ruled in her favor on a motion to suppress evidence obtained after her arrest. The motion was allowed. Now the district attorney will be limited to prosecute this case only with evidence that preceded the arrest.

Evidence In Second Offense DUI Suppressed In Massachusetts Court

Interestingly enough, Massachusetts Courts have ruled that G.L. c. 90 Section 24 by its terms does not confer the right to a breathalyzer test on someone arrested for driving under the influence. Rather, it provides protections if the police choose to administer a breathalyzer test. If one is not offered the prosecution loses its statutory presumptions of intoxication; the .08 or greater that can suggest impairment. Of course, if that is the case then there can be no license suspension for refusing or failing the breathalzyer test and a conviction will be more difficult to sustain. This would hold particularly true in this case where Belanger demanded a breathalyzer test.

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Joan Clark just got out of jail a few days ago. Then, this past Wednesday she got into a motor vehicle accident. When the police arrived she looked disoriented and had bloodshot eyes. She claimed to have had nothing to drink but was taking three kinds of medications for back pain and for withdrawal. She also had four children between the ages of three and ten in her car. Clark failed field sobriety tests and was charged with DUI, DUI with personal injury and DUI child endangerment. She did take a breathalyzer test and consistent with her representations to the police the machine registered a .00.

Woman Facing Charges Of DUI Drugs, Child Endangerment

This incident occurred in Florida. Massachusetts has similar charges that can be brought against someone who commits these crimes in Massachusetts however. The most serious of these charges in Massachusetts would be the Child Endangerment OUI charge. That crime is codified by Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90 Section 24V which states that anyone convicted of OUI with a child under the age of fourteen in the car shall be sentenced to a minimum ninety days in the house of correction. This crime is a misdemeanor but it is not subject to the “24D” disposition.

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Last Sunday night Marueen Fogwell was arrested in Massachusetts for OUI. A cell phone caller reported that Fogwell was driving erratically on Route 95. She failed some field sobriety tests and blew a .125 on a portable breathalyzer. She later blew a .10 and a .15 on a breathalyzer back at the police station. Pursuant to Massachusetts law Fogwell’s operating privileges were immediately revoked for thirty days.

Fogwell was arraigned early in the week in the Salem District Court. The judge learned that the police forgot to take her license when she was arrested and she was ordered to surrender it in court. She did and was reminded that she could not drive in Massachusetts until the Registry of Motor Vehicles restored her operating privileges. What the judge did not know was that Fogwell drove herself to court that day. However, when she left the courthouse a court officer saw her drive away and called the police. She was arrested, brought back into court and ordered held for sixty days in the house of correction or until her at least until her case is resolved.

Woman Arraigned On DUI Charge Caught Driving From Courthouse On Suspended License

Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90 Section 23 makes it a crime for anyone who has a license suspended for OUI to operate a motor vehicle during the period of suspension. The sentence is sixty days in the house of correction if convicted of this crime. It is very difficult to defend someone accused of this crime. You would have to show either that the person was not driving the vehicle or that there was an affirmative defense to this crime such as necessity. Given the facts set out in this article it is unlikely that either of these defenses is available to this defendant.

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David Macklin has played for nine years in the National Football League, most recently for the Kansas City Chiefs. Earlier today Macklin was convicted of DUI in a Virginia Court. Macklin was pulled over on March 13, 2009 for windows that were tinted too dark. The investigating officer smelled a strong odor of alcohol on Macklin’s breath. Macklin then supposedly failed some field sobriety tests. He blew a .11 on the breathalyzer, .03 over the .08 legal limit. Like Massachusetts, a conviction for a first offense DUI in Virginia is a misdemeanor.

DUI Conviction For NFL Player

This case has an interesting issue. Macklin was pulled over for having windows with a tint darker than permissible by law – – or at least the police officer thought. However, the judge acquitted Macklin of the window tint charge. According to the article this was the sole reason for the initial stop. Thus, it appears that the officer might not have had probable cause to stop the car. As a result, there might have been a viable motion to suppress the stop of the car. Typically, when a stop is declared unconstitutional all fruits fo the stop become inadmissible at trial. In this case, the fruits are the field sobriety test and breathalyzer test results.

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Ryan Woolley used to play baseball for the Brewster Whitecaps in the Cape Cod League in Brewster, Massachusetts. On June 15, 2008 he was watching the College World Series with some teammates. He had several drinks and decided to leave the home where he was drinking. A teammate who tried to stop him was struck by his vehicle and dragged for several feet. The teammate was seriously injured but luckily has recovered. Woolley blew over a .08 on the breathalyzer test. Woolley pleaded guilty to OUI and other motor vehicle related charges and was given a six month suspended sentence.

Cape Cod League Baseball Player Sentenced For June OUI

The article also disclosed that Woolley was charged with OUI causing serious bodily injury but that that charge was dropped as a result of a plea bargain. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90 Section 24L makes it a separate crime for anyone who causes serious bodily injury to someone while operating under the influence. If convicted of this crime there is a maximum penalty of 2 1/2 years in the house of correction. The overall result was good for Woolley. Massachusetts judges and district attorneys are extremely tough on OUI cases that involve property damage or personal injury. Woolley could have gone to jail and was spared that plight due to having a good lawyer and a fair minded judge and prosecutor.

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Sandra Akers is the CEO of the Tewksbury Hospital. Last Friday she went to trial on an operating under the influence of alcohol case and lost. The two day trial was in the Peabody District Court before a jury that deliberated for two hours. The penalty; first offender disposition and a ninety day loss of license.

According to reports, Akers testified that she met up with friends around 10:30 p.m. on the day of the incident and had one drink at a bar in Gloucester. She and a friend left the bar to go back to her house in Rockport to have some pizza. When she got to her driveway the lights of a cruiser went on. Apparently a cab driver had reported his observation of erratic driving of Akers vehicle. Akers was put through some field sobriety tests and then arrested. Back at the police station she blew a .13 on the breathalyzer. Through an expert witness Akers defense attorney challenged the accuracy of the test. The value of the police officer’s observations was also challenged by the defense. It was argued that Akers had certain medical conditions that could adversely impact the accuracy of the field sobriety tests and the breathalyzer test.

Read Article: Tewksbury Massachusetts Woman Convicted Of DUI

Lowell Sun: Guilty Verdict On OUI Charges For Hospital CEO

Challenging the accuracy of breathalyzer tests is something that should be done more often by defendants fighting OUI charges. You have to keep in mind that a breathalyzer is just a machine and like all machines it is fallible. There are experts who understand how these machines work and just what is necessary to determine their accuracy. Unfortunately not many defendants want to absorb the cost of engaging an expert to assist in their defense. In that case it makes it much more difficult to defend cases where breathalyzer test results will be admitted as evidence at trial.

Akers took her shot and lost however the consequence of doing so was minimal. She had a great lawyer who no doubt did a fantastic job defending her. She will lose her license for forty five days more than had she pleaded guilty and been given the 24D disposition. That is the only consequence for taking this case to trial. It is also likely that she will be given a hardship license so the intrusion on her life will be tempered somewhat. This was a risk worth taking.

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So you thought the Cincinnati Bengals off field criminal problems were over. Not just yet. Their best cornerback, the player who led the team in interceptions last year was just arrested for drunk driving in Ohio. According to reports, shortly after 3:00 a.m. on Sunday Hall was pulled over, presumably for driving over the center of the road. Police observed him with bloodshot eyes and a moderate smell of alcohol on his breath. Hall was given a breathalyzer test where he blew nearly .15, almost twice the legal limit in Ohio.

DUI Charges For Another NFL Player

Here is what Hall is facing. In Ohio, a first offense conviction requires a three day jail sentence or a three day driver education program. The court will then suspend your driver’s license for anywhere between six months and three years. The penalty for blowing above .10 is a ninety day loss of license. Had Hall refused to take the breathalyzer test he would be looking at a one year loss of license. It might be possible for Hall to get limited driving privileges after fifteen days.

Had this occurred in Massachusetts, Hall would have a thirty day loss of license for the .10 and a forty five day loss of license for the drunk driving conviction, assuming he gets convicted. He would also have to enter into an alcohol education program and pay fines and fees.

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Lucille Gatchell got into her car just over one week ago and while driving around Gloucester, Massachusetts she got into an accident. Apparently she was switching lanes and struck the car in front of her head on. The occupants of the other car were Sandra Bullock and her husband, Jesse James. Gatchell took a breathalyzer test and blew a .20, two and one half times the legal limit in Massachusetts. She was arrested and charged with OUI in the Gloucester District Court. Fortunately for Gatchell no one was injured.

Sandra Bullock Hit By Drunk Driver In Massachusetts

So what is in store for Gatchell. If this is her first offense Gatchell will probably plead guilty or admit to sufficient facts and the “24D” program will likely be imposed. The “24D” program is the abbreviated name for Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 90 Section 24D. That provision of the law is the alternative sentence for first offenders designed primarily for remedial purposes. Typically when this statute is used the offender will be placed on probation for one year, will have to enter into an alcohol education program and will lose his license for forty five days. In most cases a hardship license will be issued permitting the person to operate within a designated twelve hour period every day.

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Salem, Massachusetts police received a call concerning an accident in a yard of a residential neighborhood. When they responded they found Luis Francis, 26 of Lynn, Massachusetts in his truck stopped in the middle of the road. Concerned about the strong odor of alcohol coming from Francis the police asked him to perform some field sobriety tests. He agreed. This was a mistake. Francis failed. Then Francis was taken to the police station where he was asked to take a breathalyzer test. Francis made another mistake by agreeing to take this test. Once again he failed and registered a .27. This is almost three and one half times the legal limit. Further investigation revealed that Francis drove his car across a lawn and had crashed into a rock causing enough damage to his pickup truck that the airbags deployed. He was charged with OUI in the Salem District Court,.

Read Article: Lynn Man Charged With OUI After Crashing In Residential Neighborhood

In Massachusetts if you refuse to take field sobriety tests and/or a breathalyzer test, the fact that you refused cannot be used as evidence at your trial. In other words, a jury never hears that you refused to take these tests. In a case such as this one, the fact that the defendant failed the tests does become evidence that can be used against him at trial. Here, the evidence is extremely damaging, making this case very difficult for Francis to win.

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