Blood Split Motions

A blood-split motion may help your attorney establish that there was a violation of Title 17. If upon independent analysis a technician finds that the blood or urine was not properly stored or handled, then an attorney is capable of fighting the charges of a DUI by claiming that the evidence is unreliable. When there is a violation of title 17, there is enough reason to believe that the sample you provided (either blood or urine) may have been affected by an external factor which has produced a false reading. A blood split motion may help the following cases.

• For example, Tommy a responsible California driver is well aware of the traffic laws and entering a bar, he knows he will only drink four beers. Tommy weighs 160 pounds, four beers would not have a huge impact on his blood alcohol content. However, upon driving back home, he is stopped by a police officer and due to his tired looking eyes, he is subject to a breathalyzer. His saliva still moist with beer residue triggers a high alcohol content reading and he is arrested. After the arrest, he provides a blood analysis test and the results show that he was in fact over the legal BAC level at 0.10%.
  • Tommy knows that his blood alcohol content could not have been that high. Having done the math correctly, a person like Tommy should be able to drink up to four 12 oz beers in an hour and still be good enough to drive. Tommy’s DUI attorney is suspicious of the BAC test and requests to have a separate sample independently tested. They then discover that his blood alcohol content was not mixed well enough to ensure that the blood is kept from coagulating and/or fermenting. Tommy’s lawyer is then capable of presenting the findings in a courtroom where the charges are dropped.

• In another instance, Ray is coming home from a bar and like Tommy, she is arrested on a false premise. Upon entering the station the police conducts a urine analysis test and finds a BAC reading of 0.09%. She is suspicious of the reading and request that her lawyer file a separate investigation. Since the samples must be stored for up to a year, her lawyer request that the sample is retested. They find that their analysis produced a BAC reading of 0.06% Her lawyer is then able to use this information to attempt to persuade the judge to drop the charges.

In California, there are a number of things can be contested whenever a law enforcement agent conducts a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) test. The Title 17 of the California Code of Regulations explains how blood, urine, and breath samples should be collected, analyzed, and reserved. If there is any violation of the strict regulations provided by the Title 17, there is a good reason to contest a DUI charge. Under title 17:

• The blood, breath, and urine samples used to conduct a BAC test, is required by law, to be collected by an authorized person. If the person who has conducted the BAC test is not an authorized officer, there may be a reason to contest the findings of the test. An authorized handler is knowledgeable of the laws that guide Title 17 which means that they know how to properly handle the samples to avoid contamination. A person that is not authorized, may not know of the regulations that guide the collecting and storing procedures. Failing to follow the regulations under title 17 can result in cross-contamination resulting in false readings.
• The person conducting a BAC test must collect enough blood and urine so that two samples may be stored. One sample is to be used by the police lab station while the other sample is to be stored for the driver charged with a DUI. Failing to store enough for two separate investigations is a violation of the law. An experienced attorney may have the sample of blood removed from being used in a courtroom for violation of Title 17 procedures.
• The urine, blood, and breath samples must be collected as soon as possible. Waiting to test the driver can result in a reading that is inaccurate.
• The sample of urine, blood, or breath cannot be contaminated. As mentioned earlier, breath tests readings can be altered when the equipment is not regularly maintained or calibrated. However, if you took a blood or urine test, the samples can be analyzed to ensure that the sample is not cross-contaminated. A contaminated sample can result in high BAC readings. If an independent analysis concludes that the sample is contaminated, then an attorney may remove the sample from being used in a courtroom.
• The container holding the blood or urine sample must have enough preservatives and anticoagulant to ensure that the blood or urine are properly preserved. There are times when there are not enough preservatives in a vial resulting in a high alcohol content. Failing to provide the correct amount of preservatives may allow the blood to ferment resulting in an inaccurate reading. An independent investigation will be capable of testing to see whether the container had enough anticoagulant and preservative. Again, if there is not enough of preservatives in the vial, an attorney may dismiss the sample and it cannot be used to press charges.
• In addition, to have the correct amount of preservatives in a container, the preservative and the container must have been properly mixed with the test sample. This means that the authorized technician must have mixed the container enough times to ensure that the blood/urine and preservatives are properly mixed.
• The draw sight must be clean, but it cannot be cleaned with an alcohol-based disinfectant. If the draw sight is treated with an alcohol-based disinfectant it can alter the BAC reading. Since the test is meant to measure the amount of alcohol in your blood system, any residue of alcohol either on the surface of a counter or in the air can impact the readings of a BAC test.

A thorough investigation of your arrest, sample collection and preservation, and other factors will greatly help your case. A DUI arrest involves many lawful steps and procedures that must be followed under Title 17. Violation of the strict regulations with regards to a BAC test can be reason enough to remove the sample from being used in a courtroom. A blood split motion allows the driver to have a second look at the findings to determine if there was an error or violation of certain principles. If the driver finds that there was a violation of Title 17 after conducting their own investigation, the outcome may result in the dismissal of the case. At the very least, an attorney may be able to drop the charges to a wet-reckless if and when a violation of Title 17 is proved. Of course, every DUI case holds a substantial amount of factors that contribute differently to every case. To have an accurate understanding of your case, you should speak with a local DUI expert.

A breath test unlike the urine analysis and the blood test cannot be “split”. However, when you take a breath test there are a number of factors that could contribute to an incorrect BAC reading. You will want to inform your attorney what type of test you took so that the attorney is capable of prescribing the correct measures to take.