Challenging Common Errors in DUI Blood Testing

When faced with a DUI charge, many people believe all hope is lost and they can’t fight the charge— especially if a blood test revealed their BAC (blood alcohol content) to be over the legal limit.

Don’t believe this for a minute!

When you work with an experienced and skilled DUI defense attorney, you can fight all aspects of your DUI, even blood test evidence. At Judnich Law Office, our Montana DUI attorneys are trained to understand, identify, and challenge the common errors committed during DUI blood testing.

Remember, the government must prove your guilt beyond a reasonable doubt. They have many obstacles to overcome in a court of law before they can introduce blood testing evidence.

 

Challenging DUI blood tests in Montana

To challenge a DUI blood test in Montana, you must first understand the process.

Warrant

First, it must be determined if the state even has the right to take a blood sample. Your blood is constitutionally protected. Unless you voluntarily give consent for a blood draw, the government needs to get a search warrant in order to obtain a blood draw.

The warrant procedure has its own protocol that should be evaluated in every case.

Blood Draw Procedure

Once a warrant is obtained, a medical protocol exists in order to properly obtain two (2) separate blood samples without contamination. Many, many examples of potential contamination can occur, including:

  • Multiple needle puncture attempts and sites
  • Methods of cleaning injection sites
  • Proper needle angle
  • Adequate timing of applying and loosening a tourniquet
  • Proper mixing of preservatives
  • Proper labeling and sealing

All of this is considered before we even review how blood samples are actually handled after the blood is drawn. Only an extremely proficient and experienced DUI defense attorney is able to identify and evaluate all these procedures to identify if errors occurred in your case.

Storage & Testing

Attorneys from the Judnich Law Office have studied liquid chromatography mass spectrometry used in blood alcohol testing

Next, the actual blood testing storage and testing procedure can be the source of a variety of challengeable errors.

The possession or chain of custody of the blood is a serious issue that must be examined to rule out possible contamination. This is in addition to the actual technician handling, sampling and testing the blood in very sophisticated equipment.

The actual test itself is extremely complex and many complications are possible. Errors and issues can include:

  • Insufficient blood quantity tested
  • False positive identification of alcohol in test results
  • Improper maintenance
  • Errors in labeling
  • Errors in identifying the correct substance

Again, only an experienced attorney who has worked with the crime lab previously, knows their procedures, knows their potential problem areas, and who can actually read and interpret the complicated process of alcohol testing in chromatography should be considered when you want to hire the very best of defense attorneys in your case.

Watch as Marty Judnich, DUI attorney, reviews the questions EVERYONE should ask their lawyer

 

Judnich Law Office can fight for your rights

If you’ve been charged with a DUI and want Montana’s most trusted DUI attorneys on your side, contact the Judnich Law Office today.

Our experience, education, training, and passion for fighting blood test results is what sets us apart from other Montana DUI lawyers. We can identify potential blood testing errors that can lead to the exclusion of blood testing evidence at a trial.

This knowledge can be the difference between obtaining positive result in your DUI charge and an outcome that follows you for the rest of your life.

Contact the Judnich Law Office online or call (406) 721-3354 to schedule your free and confidential consultation. We take every case seriously and we are ready to fight for you.