Top Georgia DUI Myths

Top DUI Myths from an Atlanta DUI Lawyer

The Facts about Georgia DUI's from a Top Atlanta DUI Attorney

The best advice you can get is to make sure you don't place yourself in a position to be charged with an Atlanta DUI or Georgia DUI case. Here's some top myths relating to DUI Georgia:

Myth: Driving at a BAC of .08 is impaired or dangerous.

Fact: A University of Utah study found that drivers talking on cell phones with and without earbuds were more dangerous than drivers who had consumed enough alcohol to be in excess of the 0.08 legal blood alcohol limit for most states. See blog link Strayer, D. Human Factors, Summer 2006; vol 48: pp 381-391. Insurance Institute for Highway Safety: "DUI/DWI Laws." News release, University of Utah.

Myth: Breath Spray will help you beat the DUI breath test.

Fact: Breath spray will only increase the reading of the machine, which is not what you want.

Myth: Sucking on a penny will help fool a Georgia DUI machine.

Fact: Nope: Pennies can't fool a breathlyzer.

Myth: "Alcohol on the breath" is a reliable sign of alcohol consumption and intoxication.

Fact: Alcohol does not have an odor. The smell of "alcohol on the breath" is actually the odor of the things in or ingredients of the alcoholic beverages. Non-alcoholic beers will produce the same smell the as drinking a regular alcoholic beer. Georgia law even recognizes that the mere odor of alcohol is not enough to convict someone of an Atlanta DUI or Georgia DUI.

Myth: A Breath test will clear diabetics who exhibit characteristics of alcohol impairment like slurred speech, confusion, stumbling, sleepiness, uncoordinated behavior and red face cause them to fail field sobriety tests.

Fact: Diabetics often have acetone in their breath, which DUI breath machines may confuse with alcohol in the blood stream.

Myth: Field sobriety evaluations are validated by the National Highway Transportation and Safety Administration, and accurately identify drunk drivers.

Fact: The three standardized test the HGN(eye jerking test), Walk and Turn and One Leg Stand are 77%, 65% AND 68% when performed under ideal conditions (with those under 65 years of age), with no back, leg, knee, ankle or inner ear conditions on a flat, level, dry, debris free surface in heels less than two inches. These conditions are rarely met especially in questionable weather, at night, or with strobe lights flashing in the background.Further, Police Officers rarely perform these test as they are trained. The end result is that tests can be looked as stupid human tricks rather than accurate tests of sobriety.

Myth: DUI breathlyzer machine are validated as accurate and cannot be challenged in court.

Fact: There are many sources of error in breath tests. Mouth wash, mouth alcohol, acetone, radio frequency interference, certain solvents and chemicals, asthma inhalers which contain albuterol suspended in ethanol or alcohol vapor. Even in the absence of any of these common problems and under ideal conditions, alcohol breath testers simply lack precision. The Georgia Intox. 5000 breath testing manual states that breath testing has inherent sample variability of 0.01 for one sample and 0.02 for two samples. This means that under ideal conditions, which is a highly unlikely situation, a breath alcohol reading of .08 reflects an actual blood alcohol reading of anywhere from .06 to .1. That is a margin of error of 25 percent of the legal limit. At the under 21 level of .02 the error rating is 100%!

Myth: A person accused of DUI by breath test is presumed innocent. The presumption of innocence guaranteed by the both the U.S. and Georgia Constitutions.

Fact: Although the presumption of innocence may be guaranteed by and the constitution, it is denied in fact by a state of Georgia adminstered breath test. The state administered breath test is presumed to be accurate and you have the responsibility to prove it doesn't work by hiring an expert to testisfy to the known shortcomings of the machine, or having an extremely effective cross examination by an experienced DUI lawyer using the Officer's own training materials.

Myth: Law enforcement officers cannot influence the BAC reading of a Georgia DUI breath-testing machine.

Fact: Law enforcement officers asolutely can, and do, influence BAC readings. The first part of lung air, after discarding the dead space, has an alcohol concentration much lower than the equivalent Blood Alcohol Content. Whereas, the last part of lung air has an alcohol concentration that is much higher than the equivalent Blood Alcohol Content.The last part of the breath can be over 50% above the alcohol level. Thus, a breath test reading of 0.12% taken from the last part of the breath may indicate that the blood level is only 0.07%."

Myth: DUI Alcohol breath machines measure the concentration of alcohol in a person's blood stream (blood alcohol concentration or BAC).

Fact: No. DUI breath machines don't measure blood alcohol content. BAC can only be achieved with a blood test. In an attempt to measure alcohol in the blood stream, they measure alcohol on the breath and suppose from that measurement a BAC.As result, some states do not permit breath tests as admissable in court. Alcohol breath machines detect any chemical compounds that contain the methyl group in its molecular structure. Thousands of such compounds exist, such as gasoline, acetone, glue, asthma inhalers, cleaning fluids, paint, paint remover, celluloid, even "new car smell".

Breath Machines also assume as constants certain ratios within the human body that actually vary widely from person to person and within the same person over time. For example, many breath-testing machines assume a 2,100-to-1 ratio in converting alcohol in the breath to estimates of alcohol in the blood. However, this ratio varies from 1,900 to 2,400 among people and also within a person over time. Some breath analysis machines assume a hematocrit (blood cells as a percent of blood volume) of 47%. By comparison, Lance Armstrong may have a hemocrit level of 47-49%, but anything over 50% is considering blood doping and would result in a two year ban from professional cycling llike the Tour de France or Tour de Georgia. However, hematocrit values range from 42 to 49% in men and from 37 to 47% in women. These machines appear to discriminate against female suspects.

These machines assume a body mass of an average male and do not account for individuals with higher body fat. The machines assume an average body temperature. Can you say junk science?

If you're arrested and charged with an Atlanta DUI or Georgia DUI, be sure to contact a experienced Atlanta DUI or Georgia DUI Attorney. To intelligently, evaluate your case, a competent Georgia DUI lawyer will need evaluate the police reports, incident reports, video tapes, and 911 dispatch tapes, and at least attempt to speak with the police involved who are not required to talk prior to taking the witness stand.

Hiring a qualified Georgia DUI lawyer is crucial! See our website at www.georgecreal.com or call at (404) 333-0706