DUI Charges from a Failed Breath Test or Blood Test
When a driver is suspected of driving under the influence and is arrested, Santa Ana law enforcement will request that the driver take a breath test or blood test to determine his or her blood alcohol concentration. A driver's refusal of a breath test or performance on a breath or blood test will typically be the determination of whether DUI charges will be filed or whether the driver will face license suspension by the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles).
In Santa Ana and throughout California, a driver will face DUI charges if his or her blood alcohol concentration is .08% or greater, as determined by a breath test or blood test. Although these tests provide physical evidence against a driver in the form of the evaluation of a breath or blood sample, there are ways a competent Santa Ana DUI lawyer can challenge the outcome of a test of this kind.
Depending on the circumstances of your case and how the breath test or blood test was performed, your attorney may be able to defend you against a DUI conviction.
Defenses against Breath and Blood Tests in Santa Ana
Although you may have been charged with DUI in Santa Ana because a breath test or blood test showed that your blood alcohol concentration was .08% or higher, your DUI defense lawyer can look to different ways to either challenge the validity of a test or prove that the test result should not be used as direct evidence against you at your DMV hearing or in criminal court. For example, breath test devices are required to properly calibrated and regularly maintained. What if the device that took your breath sample was not properly calibrated? This may offer your attorney grounds to challenge the result.
Contact a Santa Ana breath test attorney at our law offices to learn more about how we can help you challenge your DUI charges by questioning the validity of a blood test or breath test.