What Is the Intoxilyzer 8000?

Cantor
November 5, 2012

The Intoxilyzer 8000 is a brand of breathalyzer that measures the blood alcohol content (BAC) of those accused of drinking and driving (DUI). Law enforcement personnel across the nation use this device when someone is arrested for driving while intoxicated.

Like all breathalyzers, the Intoxilyzer 8000 has specific instructions that must be closely followed. The operator must go through a long series of exact instructions. The requirements follow: pre-test observation, do a blank air test, conduct a diagnostic test, do a second blank air test, take the subject’s breath sample, do a third blank air test, complete a continued observation period, do a fourth blank air test, take a second breath sample, do a fifth blank air test, take a control sample, do a sixth blank air test, complete the comment lines and print the test report. Mistakes at any phase of testing can affect the readings of the breathalyzer. The blank air tests should read 0.000 to assess the accuracy of the instrument. The Intoxilyzer 8000 also runs a diagnostic self-test on the machine operation. When subjects blow into the breathalyzer, the machine may not register the sample properly. In this case, the subject needs to retake the test in order to provide a valid sample. There is room for operator error at any step during the process. Medical conditions, such as diabetes, going without food or exposure to certain gases, can also provide an incorrect reading. Radios and cell phones can interfere with the reading.

In Cincinnati, OH, police were told by the courts to quit using the Intoxilyzer 8000. Other states, including Arizona, Florida, Minnesota and Tennessee, are questioning the error margin of the machine. Several jurisdictions have raised defense issues in drunken driving cases nationally. Ohio received conflicting instructions at one point regarding the use of the machine from two separate courts.

The state of Kansas also threw hundreds of DUI cases out of court because of the questionable validity of the Intoxilyzer 8000. The courts specifically questioned false positive readings that the machine reported. The breathalyzer can determine a person’s innocence or guilt for a DUI because of the weight the courts give to the readings. Some judges in Florida refuse to allow the Intoxilyzer results in their courts. Other courts are calling expert witnesses to testify about the validity of the Intoxilyzer. Without the results from the machine, courts must depend on the testimony of law enforcement personnel and other witnesses.

Anyone accused of a DUI should seek legal counsel prior to taking a breathalyzer test. The results of the tests can be affected by a number of outside factors. The machine operator may not know how to conduct the test. Suspects should be fully advised of their rights by an expert attorney before they jeopardize their freedom by submitting to an Intoxilyzer 8000 breath test.

This Guest Post was provided by David Michael Cantor. The Law Offices of David Michael Cantor is an AV rated law firm based in Phoenix, AZ. For more information Drug DUI charges please see our website: http://cantordruglawyers.com