{"id":17876,"date":"2020-08-26T15:53:17","date_gmt":"2020-08-26T22:53:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/criminal-defense-law\/?p=17876"},"modified":"2023-03-02T16:10:26","modified_gmt":"2023-03-02T23:10:26","slug":"false-positive-breathalyzer-test","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.jacksonwhitelaw.com\/criminal-defense-law\/blog\/false-positive-breathalyzer-test\/","title":{"rendered":"What Can Cause a False Positive Breathalyzer Test in Arizona?"},"content":{"rendered":"
With almost 30,000 DUIs<\/a> occurring in Arizona each year, it is safe to assume that errors occur when determining if someone is under the influence. One such error that occurs far too often is a false positive result for a breathalyzer test.<\/p>\n An officer who pulls someone over under the suspicion of drunk driving will determine sobriety by performing two tests; a field sobriety test and a breathalyzer test. A field sobriety test<\/a> is a group of three tests used to assess balance, coordination and the ability of a driver to divide his or her attention to more than one task during the field sobriety test.<\/p>\n The tests used in a field sobriety test are:<\/p>\n Unlike the field sobriety test which requires movement, a breathalyzer test uses a mechanical device to assess the blood alcohol level of a driver. The breathalyzer test is the most important tool when determining whether or not someone is driving under the influence and the reading it gives will determine how harshly a driver will be charged.<\/p>\n In Arizona, even though you have the right to refuse a breathalyzer test<\/a>, you should not do so. If a driver refuses a breathalyzer test, they are not preventing themselves from being arrested for a DUI as an officer use other means to ultimately decide if they believe a driver is under the influence and arrest them. Instead, refusing a breathalyzer test only delays the process and it will result in will result in the following:<\/p>\n An officer will perform a breathalyzer test to determine if a driver is over the legal limit of 0.08% blood alcohol level (BAC). If the BAC is above 0.08% the driver will be charged according Arizona\u2019s three DUI categories:<\/p>\nHow Do Police Officers Determine Drunk Driving?<\/h2>\n
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Do You Have to Take a Breathalyzer Test in Arizona?<\/h2>\n
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Breathalyzer Test Readings<\/h2>\n
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