DUI DWI News: Why You Don't Want a Conviction.

DUI - Why Intoxilyzer Source Code Matters In DUI Cases

Jamie — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 02:30:25 +0000

Why Intoxilyzer Source Code Matters In DUI Cases
In DUI cases the state wants everybody to believe that the Intoxilyzer machine has been tested. (…)
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Should I plead to a Metabolite DUI?
I was discussing a case with a prosecutor today. He made the offer that my client plead to Driving with a Measurable Amount of a Controlled Substance in his system. This is basically the same thing as a DUI, except the prosecution does not have to prove any impairment or level whatsoever. The only thing they have to show is that the person had a small amount of the byproduct of a drug in their system. The only defense to this charge is that the person has a valid prescription for the controlled substance. Should the person plead to this charge? My answer is if there is another way around it, don’t plea to. I suggested a Drug Related Reckless charge. The prosecutor asked why? Here are my four reasons?

A metabolite charge will suspend your license for 90 days, or 1 year if it is a second offense.
A Drug Related Reckless driving charge will save the license (if you kept it at the DMV hearing), or will reduce the license suspension to 60 days if it is a first offense.
Usually, the Courts will give a lessor fine for a DRR.
Usually, the DRR will not involve jail time or as much community service hours.

Be aware that both charges are similar in nature. They both will stay on your record for 10 years before expungement can take place. Both usually require a drug class. Both will have the stigma of DUI along with insurance implications.

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Utah Justice Courts
I found this article in the Ogden Standard Examiner. The opinion of the writer is one that I have heard many times. I see what the writer is talking about quite often in reference to "overly aggressive" prosecutions. We don’t seem to care what happens to people incarcerated, at least, until one of our loved ones ends up there.

Publication:Standard Examiner; Date:Jan 11, 2008; Section:Opinion; Page Number:4A

Utah’s justice system needs repair

What’s wrong with the justice system?

Prosecutors are overly aggressive and seek convictions at any cost to further their careers, and different levels of law enforcement are abusive to inmates. The system has corrupt officers who hide behind their badges while breaking the law, and a judge who failed to recuse himself from a trial due to friendship with the victim’s family.

There are people who are innocent and are sent to prison, and people who have mental disabilities and need help but are sent to jail or prison without getting the help they need.

The state then asks for more federal funding, and our taxes are raised because a new prison needs to be built.

The problem is there is not one elected official who is willing to step up to the plate and recognize that there is a problem, nor do they use their position to promote a healthy, safe rehabilitation program within the prison or jail. They have the feeling that prison is a problem with no solution.

The temptation is always to look away, hoping the troubles inside the walls will not affect us.

Every day people go to prison, but the public knows very little about their conditions of confinement (rape, abuse by officers, infectious diseases, etc.) and whether they are being punished in ways that no jury ever intended. Unless the experience of incarceration becomes real through the confinement of a loved one, the people inside the confined walls are far removed from daily concerns.

Bonnie Terry

West Haven

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Utah Highway Patrol Has Quotas to Make DUI Arrests
Its Memorial Day weekend for 2008. Troopers have often claimed in the newspapers and in open court that there are no quotas to make arrests. In this story below, Trooper Cameron Roden tells the news reports that the troopers are encouraged to average at least one DUI arrest per officer involved in the DUI Blitz. Further, the Trooper is asked if the Blitzes work to deter drunk driving. The Trooper responds that the Blitz is not effective in that regard. The DUI arrests never go down, according to the Trooper. Well that brings up an interesting point. If officers are encouraged to get one arrest per officer, then there seems to be an incentive to arrest borderline cases and perhaps innocent people.

Here’s another story on the DUI blitz held for this weekend.

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The importance of attorney-client communication
In my DUI Law Blog I recently posted a summary of a new Arizona Court of Appeals DUI Case. (…)
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Followup to Utah’s DUI Single Breath Test (DUI)

Jamie — Sat, 10 Jan 2009 15:16:01 +0000

Followup to Utah’s DUI Single Breath Test
I saw this story about Cynthia Sommer and was overjoyed that an innocent woman was released from jail. I was saddened that it took 2 years of jail, a jury conviction, and a "second test" to finally exonerate her. Why did it take so long for a second test. This was a murder case. This was a case that the prosecutors convicted an innocent woman. This was a case that could have been solved without ruining a life of a grieving woman with a simple duplicate test. What does this story have to do with DUI’s in Utah? People in Utah accused of DUIs are requested to take a single test. The breath sample is not preserved for later testing by an independent agency. Compare the breath test machine that has the same computer chip of the 1970 version of the Atari computer game with the high tech blood testing machines used in most murder cases, and yet the first test was wrong. How many innocent people have been convicted of DUIs because only one test was given? In Utah the answer could be astonishing.

The story follows:
MSNBC.com
Cleared woman questions prosecutors
She spent two years in prison for husband’s alleged arsenic death
The Associated Press
updated 6:11 p.m. MT, Fri., April. 18, 2008
SAN DIEGO - A woman who spent more than two years in jail before she was cleared of killing her Marine husband with arsenic questioned Friday how prosecutors could sleep at night, now knowing that new tests showed no traces of poison.

Cynthia Sommer, 34, said she barely slept herself on her first night of freedom after a San Diego Superior Court judge Thursday dismissed charges that she poisoned her husband in 2002.

She was convicted of first-degree murder in January 2007 after initial tests of Sgt. Todd Sommer’s liver showed levels of arsenic 1,020 times above normal.

But prosecutors found no traces of poison in previously untested tissue as they prepared for a second trial. A judge had ordered a new trial in November after finding she had ineffective representation from her former attorney.

At her trial, prosecutors argued that Sommer used her husband’s life insurance to pay for breast implants and pursue a more luxurious lifestyle.

With no proof that Sommer was the source of the arsenic detected in her husband’s liver, the government relied heavily on circumstantial evidence of Sommer’s financial debt and later spending sprees to show that she had a motive to kill her 23-year-old husband.

‘I did what I did’
Sommer criticized prosecutors for questioning her behavior after her husband’s death, saying, “I did what I did.”

She was set free within hours of the judge’s ruling and emerged from the Las Colinas Detention Facility in suburban Santee.

“The only question I have for (prosecutors) is how they sleep at night?” Sommer said.

Her attorney, Allen Bloom, said he felt the evidence was contaminated. “We’ve said that all along,” he told reporters outside the courthouse.

Bloom accused the district attorney of “gross negligence.”

San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis defended her handling of the case Friday, saying that justice was served and that her office acted appropriately.

Earlier samples contaminated?
“We did what we were supposed to do,” Dumanis told KFMB-TV. “We’re all looking backwards now and second-guessing everything.”

A recently retained government expert speculated that the earlier samples were contaminated, prosecutors wrote in a motion filed in court. The expert said he found the initial results “very puzzling” and “physiologically improbable.”

Todd Sommer was in top physical condition when he collapsed and died Feb. 18, 2002, at the couple’s home on the Marine Corps’ Miramar base in San Diego. His death was initially ruled a heart attack.

Dumanis said Thursday there was no proof of contamination but offered no other explanation. She said she didn’t know how the tissue may have been contaminated.

“We had an expert who said it was arsenic and no reason to doubt that evidence,” Dumanis said. “The bottom line was, ’Was there arsenic in Mr. Sommer causing his death?’ Our results showed that there was.”

Sommer said she wasn’t sure what she would do now that she was out of jail. She was looking forward to seeing her four children, ages 8 to 16.

“It’s already been an incredible day. I can’t wait to finish it,” she said.

© 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24207106/

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Arizona DUI Courts - battle over racial equality
Phoenix, AZ - There is a battle raging between Maricopa County Courts and current County Attorney Andrew Thomas over the DUI Court program. (…)
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Utah DUI Ignition Interlock Devices (DWI)

Jamie — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 04:45:21 +0000

Utah DUI Ignition Interlock Devices
For a first time offense of DUI, normally the Courts will not impose an ignition interlock device requirement unless the person’s breath/blood alcohol content is at or over a .16. If there is a subsequent offense, the ignition interlock is mandatory. A person can be required to install the ignition interlock device if they are a restricted driver (no measurable amount of alcohol allowed) and the person is convicted of driving with a measurable amount of alcohol in the person’s system. Sometimes, responsible people put these devices in their car "just to be safe." Be cautious. These machines, like any other machine, can give false readings. I had a client that kept setting the device off because she used hand cleaner that has an alcohol base to it. Further, you may blow into the machine and determine that you are under the limit of .08. However, an officer can still arrest you if he believes you are too impaired to drive your car safely regardless of what your breath alcohol content. People have asked me, where do I get one of these machines? Here is a list that I found in Utah for that machine.

BREATH ALCOHOL IGNITION INTERLOCK DEVICE PROVIDER LIST 02/29/08

A breath alcohol ignition interlock device is a constant monitoring device which, when installed in a
motor vehicle, prevents the motor vehicle from being started without first sampling the operator’s breath
alcohol concentration. If the operator’s breath alcohol concentration is greater than a predetermined
concentration level the device prevents the motor vehicle from being started.

The following is a list of providers certified to calibrate and install breath alcohol ignition interlock
devices in Utah:

702 Motoring
Contact: Joey Carter
595 Bluff St.
St. George, UT 84770
Telephone: (435) 986-9800

A Plus Interlock Systems
Contact: CoDee Stephens
2647 S 1900 W
West Haven (Ogden), UT 84401
Telephone: 1-800-659-0380
Cell: (801) 510-4440 (Ogden)
Fax: (801) 334-7499

Affordable Interlock
7107 S 400 W #4
Midvale, UT 84047
Telephone: (801) 562-5111
Toll Free: 1-888-488-0484

Affordable Interlock
155 N Bluff St.
St. George, UT 84770
Telephone: (801) 562-5111
Toll Free: 1-888-488-0484

Affordable Interlock
325 N Main St.
Spanish Fork, UT 84660
Telephone: (801) 562-5111
Toll Free: 1-888-488-0484

Alcohol Sensors International
Contact: David Gannon or Joseph Lively
3911 West VanBuren
Phoenix, AZ 85009
Toll Free: 1-888-786-7384

American Interlock
Contact: George Stoll
PO Box 2045
West Jordan, UT 84084
Telephone: (801) 201-1255
Email: a_interlock@hotmail.com

Best Interlock
Contact: Patrick Kennett
2232 N 640 W
West Bountiful, UT 84087
Telephone: (801) 292-7800

Best Interlock
Contact: Patrick Kennett
860 W Riverdale Rd., Unit A2
Riverdale, UT 84405
Telephone: (801) 644-1600

BTC Interlock
Contact: Sean or Levi
515 N 2500 W
Vernal, UT 84078
Telephone: (435) 789-6465

Chapman Security & Investigations, LLC
Private Probation Division
7651 S 700 W, Suite 109
Midvale, UT 84047
Telephone: (801) 838-9194
FAX: (801) 838-9196

Chapman Security & Investigations, LLC
Private Probation Division
7 South Main Street, Suite 108
Tooele, UT 84074
Telephone: (435) 843-0814
FAX: (435) 843-0854

Riverdale Circuit City
Road Shop
1093 W Riverdale Rd
Riverdale, UT 84405

Stokes Car Entertainment
896 N Main
Logan, UT 84321

Orem Circuit City
360 W University Parkway
Orem, UT 84058

Utah Motor Company
270 E Main St
Vernal, UT 84078

Sugarhouse Circuit City Road
Shop
724 E 2100 S
Salt Lake City, UT 84106

Fort Union Circuit City Road Shop
1340 E Park Centre Drive
Salt Lake City, UT 84121

Foreign Auto Service
257 W St George Blvd
St George, UT 84770

Jordan Landing Circuit City
Road Shop
7156 S Plaza Center Drive
West Jordan, UT 84084

Guardian Interlock Systems
Contact: Joseph Sheram Jr
110 Mariette Station Walk Suite 320
Marietta, GA 30060
Toll Free: 1-800-849-5465
Contact: Chris Muirbrook
Salt Lake City, UT
Telephone: (801) 278-4446

LifeSafer Interlock
Contact: Mary E Phillips
1424 s Gladiola St., #1
Salt Lake City, UT 84123
Toll Free: 1-888-301-6906
Telephone: (801) 886-2456

S&S Interlock
Contact: Scott Thompson
285 W 200 S
Pleasant Grove, UT 84062
Telephone: (801) 785-4606

Smart Start
Contact: Jim Ballard
4850 Plaza Drive
Irving, TX 75063
Toll Free: 1-800-880-3349

BREATH ALCOHOL IGNITION INTERLOCK DEVICE PROVIDER LIST 02/29/08

The following is a list of providers certified to calibrate and install breath alcohol ignition interlock
devices in Utah:

Cache County
Consumer Safety Technology
Contact: Ask for Sales
Scot Lewton, Dave Arringdale, or Tracy
Pettyjohn
10520 Hickman Rd., Suite F
Des Moines, IA 50325
Toll Free: 1-877-777-5020
www.intoxlock.com
Email: slewton@cstinc.com
Stokes Car Entertainment
896 N Main
Logan, UT 84321

Carbon County
Consumer Safety Technology
Contact: Ask for Sales
Scot Lewton, Dave Arringdale, or Tracy
Pettyjohn
10520 Hickman Rd., Suite F
Des Moines, IA 50325
Toll Free: 1-877-777-5020
www.intoxlock.com
Email: slewton@cstinc.com
Murdock Chevrolet
1355 S Carbon Ave
Price, UT 84501

Davis County
Best Interlock
Contact: Patrick Kennett
2232 N 640 W
West Bountiful, UT 84087
Telephone: (801) 292-7800

Salt Lake County
Affordable Interlock
7107 S 400 W #4
Midvale, UT 84047
Telephone: (801) 562-5111
Toll Free: 1-888-488-0484

American Interlock
Contact: George Stoll
PO Box 2045
West Jordan, UT 84084
Telephone: (801) 201-1255
Email: a_interlock@hotmail.com

702 Motoring
Contact: Joey Carter
595 Bluff St.
St. George, UT 84770
Telephone: (435) 986-9800

A Plus Interlock Systems
Contact: CoDee Stephens
2647 S 1900 W
West Haven (Ogden), UT 84401
Telephone: 1-800-659-0380
Cell: (801) 510-4440 (Ogden)
Fax: (801) 334-7499

Chapman Security & Investigations, LLC
Private Probation Division
7651 S 700 W, Suite 109
Midvale, UT 84047
Telephone: (801) 838-9194
FAX: (801) 838-9196

Consumer Safety Technology
Contact: Ask for Sales
Scot Lewton, Dave Arringdale, or Tracy
Pettyjohn
10520 Hickman Rd., Suite F
Des Moines, IA 50325
Toll Free: 1-877-777-5020
www.intoxlock.com
email: slewton@cstinc.com
Sugarhouse Circuit City Road Shop
724 E 2100 S
Salt Lake City, UT 84106
Fort Union Circuit City Road Shop
1340 E Park Centre Drive
Salt Lake City, UT 84121
Jordan Landing Circuit City
Road Shop
7156 S Plaza Center Drive
West Jordan, UT 84084

LifeSafer Interlock
Contact: Mary E Phillips
1424 s Gladiola St., #1
Salt Lake City, UT 84123
Toll Free: 1-888-301-6906
Telephone: (801) 886-2456

Tooele County
Chapman Security & Investigations, LLC
Private Probation Division
7 South Main Street, Suite 108
Tooele, UT 84074
Telephone: (435) 843-0814
FAX: (435) 843-0854

Uintah County
BTC Interlock
Contact: Sean or Levi
515 N 2500 W
Vernal, UT 84078
Telephone: (435) 789-6465

Utah County
Affordable Interlock
325 N Main St.
Spanish Fork, UT 84660
Telephone: (801) 562-5111
Toll Free: 1-888-488-0484

S&S Interlock
Contact: Scott Thompson
285 W 200 S
Pleasant Grove, UT 84062
Telephone: (801) 785-4606

Weber County
Best Interlock
Contact: Patrick Kennett
860 W Riverdale Rd., Unit A2
Riverdale, UT 84405
Telephone: (801) 644-1600

Washington County
Affordable Interlock
155 N Bluff St.
St. George, UT 84770
Telephone: (801) 562-5111
Toll Free: 1-888-488-0484

Out of State

Alcohol Sensors International
Contact: David Gannon or Joseph Lively
3911 West VanBuren
Phoenix, AZ 85009
Toll Free: 1-888-786-7384

Smart Start
Contact: Jim Ballard
4850 Plaza Drive
Irving, TX 75063
Toll Free: 1-800-880-3349

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DUI - Police Get DUIs in Utah???

Jamie — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 13:45:14 +0000

Police Get DUIs in Utah???
The Police are making arrests for DUIs. A story broke today about 30 officers being disciplined. Many of the disciplined officers were involved in sexual misconduct. However, I was shocked to see a few of them were officers convicted of DUI or Alcohol Related offenses. One of the officer’s was the the poster child for getting tough of DUIs.

Here’s a break down of what discipline occurred:

Officers disciplined

Other current or former peace officers disciplined today were:
— Centerville police: John F. Spencer, revoked for felony convictions of child abuse and assault
— Salt Lake County Sheriff s Office: Jaron H. Brown and Ronald Friend, two-year suspensions for sexual misconduct and associating with criminals; James M. Coleman, revoked for theft conviction
— Orem police: Barry T. Nielsen, revoked for conviction of sexual battery
— Utah Highway Patrol: John C. Ellis, revoked for criminal trespass
— South Ogden: Stuart J. Ford, revoked for domestic violence
— Utah County Sheriff s Office: Troy W. Abplanalp, revoked for conviction of making threats with a weapon
— Salt Lake Valley Emergency Communications Center: Stephanie K. Poret, revoked for drug use
— Tooele County Sheriff s Office: Elizabeth M. Miller, revoked for custodial sexual misconduct
— Salt Lake City police: Roger J. Nielson, revoked for sexual misconduct; Cortney C. Haggerty, four-year suspension for drug use
— Utah Department of Corrections: Stephen A. Gray, revoked for custodial sexual misconduct; Katie C. Schofield, revoked for custodial sexual misconduct; Robert W. Crozier, revoked for sexual misconduct with a state computer; Alan W. Hurst, three-year suspension for driving under the influence; Bryan R. Sandness, two-year conviction for driving under the influence; David A. Goodrich, 9-month suspension for pattern of misconduct
— Ogden police: Leon Weese, 18-month suspension for sexual misconduct
— University of Utah police: Tory K. Park, three-year suspension for driving under the influence
— Police academy cadets: Benjamin L. Walker, four-year suspension for theft; Valerie Hutchens, four-year suspension for falsifying her application
— Washington County Sheriff s Office: Joy L. Andrews, three-year suspension for lying
— Cache County Sheriff s Office: Jared L. Glover, one-year suspension for pattern of misconduct
Chief, jail officers among more than 30 disciplined by police board
By Nate Carlisle
The Salt Lake Tribune

Salt Lake Tribune
Article Last Updated:
Posted: 6:00 PM- ST. GEORGE - In what might be the largest docket in its history, the state’s police board Monday booted or disciplined more than 30 peace officers accused of wrongdoing.
That included action against the former Helper police chief and four Utah County jail officers all accused of sexual misconduct.
The four jail officers were found to have had sex with a woman jail employee in the evidence room and other locations in the jail, said the board’s investigator, Lt. Steve Winward. All four men, the woman and another male jail employee have already resigned after the affair came to light in the fall.
One Corrections officer, Michael Kingston, had his peace officer certification revoked, meaning he cannot practice law enforcement elsewhere in Utah. A former sergeant at the jail, Mark B. Binks, received a four-year suspension of his certification, while jail officer Michael H. Houck received a three-year suspension and jail officer James B. Collyer was suspended for two years.
The board revoked the peace officer certification of former Helper Chief George Zamantakis for having an affair with a one-time department secretary and then lying about it to state investigators.
Winward said when the affair came to light it caused a disruption in the small town. But investigators also noted Zamantakis still had the support of the mayor and other officers with the police department.
The board, called the Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council, adjudicated twice as many cases as normal for its quarterly meeting. Winward said the high number was not the sign of an increased discipline problem in Utah police but rather investigators and the board trying to adjudicate cases that had been ongoing.
"We were cleaning things out," Winward said.
The board meeting is coinciding with the annual conference of the Utah Chiefs of Police Association. One of the conference discussion items for Tuesday is titled: "Ethics on the Job: A Continuing Challenge."
The board also revoked the certification of former Hildale and Colorado City, Ariz., marshals Fred Barlow and Preston Barlow. The two marshals, which worked in the polygamist community on the Utah-Arizona border, already have been decertified in Arizona. They were found to have written to the community’s leader, Warren Jeffs, while he was a fugitive and they failed to answer the questions of investigators looking for Jeffs.
The board issued a four-year suspension to former Utah Highway Patrol Lt. Fred Swain. In June 2006, Swain, who lead UHP’s DUI squad, wrecked his UHP car in Draper and was charged with driving under the influence. He resigned from the patrol and later pleaded guilty to alcohol-related reckless driving.

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Cynthia Sommer, 34, said she barely slept herself on her first night of freedom after a San Diego Superior Court judge Thursday dismissed charges that she poisoned her husband in 2002.

She was convicted of first-degree murder in January 2007 after initial tests of Sgt. Todd Sommer’s liver showed levels of arsenic 1,020 times above normal.

At her trial, prosecutors argued that Sommer used her husband’s life insurance to pay for breast implants and pursue a more luxurious lifestyle.

‘I did what I did’
Sommer criticized prosecutors for questioning her behavior after her husband’s death, saying, “I did what I did.”

She was set free within hours of the judge’s ruling and emerged from the Las Colinas Detention Facility in suburban Santee.

“The only question I have for (prosecutors) is how they sleep at night?” Sommer said.

Her attorney, Allen Bloom, said he felt the evidence was contaminated. “We’ve said that all along,” he told reporters outside the courthouse.

Bloom accused the district attorney of “gross negligence.”

San Diego County District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis defended her handling of the case Friday, saying that justice was served and that her office acted appropriately.

Earlier samples contaminated?
“We did what we were supposed to do,” Dumanis told KFMB-TV. “We’re all looking backwards now and second-guessing everything.”

Dumanis said Thursday there was no proof of contamination but offered no other explanation. She said she didn’t know how the tissue may have been contaminated.

Sommer said she wasn’t sure what she would do now that she was out of jail. She was looking forward to seeing her four children, ages 8 to 16.

“It’s already been an incredible day. I can’t wait to finish it,” she said.

© 2008 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
URL: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24207106/

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Why Intoxilyzer Source Code Matters In DUI Cases (DWI)

Jamie — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 13:45:10 +0000

Why Intoxilyzer Source Code Matters In DUI Cases
In DUI cases the state wants everybody to believe that the Intoxilyzer machine has been tested. (…)
Source: feeds.feedburner.com

Publication:Standard Examiner; Date:Jan 11, 2008; Section:Opinion; Page Number:4A

Utah’s justice system needs repair

What’s wrong with the justice system?

Prosecutors are overly aggressive and seek convictions at any cost to further their careers, and different levels of law enforcement are abusive to inmates. The system has corrupt officers who hide behind their badges while breaking the law, and a judge who failed to recuse himself from a trial due to friendship with the victim’s family.

There are people who are innocent and are sent to prison, and people who have mental disabilities and need help but are sent to jail or prison without getting the help they need.

The state then asks for more federal funding, and our taxes are raised because a new prison needs to be built.

The problem is there is not one elected official who is willing to step up to the plate and recognize that there is a problem, nor do they use their position to promote a healthy, safe rehabilitation program within the prison or jail. They have the feeling that prison is a problem with no solution.

The temptation is always to look away, hoping the troubles inside the walls will not affect us.

Every day people go to prison, but the public knows very little about their conditions of confinement (rape, abuse by officers, infectious diseases, etc.) and whether they are being punished in ways that no jury ever intended. Unless the experience of incarceration becomes real through the confinement of a loved one, the people inside the confined walls are far removed from daily concerns.

Bonnie Terry

West Haven

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Courts complicit in framing future DUI murder charges?
There is an interesting post on Lawrence Taylor's DUI Blog about linking previous DUI convictions to a future murder charge. According to Mr. (…)
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Followup on Washington Breath Test Fiasco! (DUI)

Jamie — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 06:15:27 +0000

Followup on Washington Breath Test Fiasco!

Barry Logan is (was) the head of the Washington State Crime Lab. He has resigned because of the fiasco that took place in the lab. I met Barry at a course I took in Indiana. He was very knowledgeable about the science of Breath Testing. I’m sad that this has cost him his career. I am sad that innocent people may have been convicted because of the things that happened in the lab. I am also sad for a corrupt justice system. Here is the story as posted in Seattle.

I have also posted the story here in case the link dries up.

State crime lab chief resigns after problems raised on DUI evidence
Director, who leaves in March, says problems now fixed
By TRACY JOHNSON
P-I REPORTER

The head of the state labs that test crime evidence is stepping down, a move that prosecutors and defense lawyers say could help bring back lost confidence in the way drunken-driving cases are handled around the state.

Barry Logan’s resignation, effective March 14, comes after a series of problems at the Washington State Patrol toxicology lab have cast doubts on breath tests for suspected drunken drivers.

Mike Urban / P-I
Barry Logan talks to the media Thursday about his crime lab resignation. At right is State Patrol Chief John Batiste.
"Barry has done an excellent job of addressing the issues during this difficult period," State Patrol Chief John Batiste said. "But he and I agree that forward momentum will require different leadership."

The decision stunned attorneys who have worked with Logan on criminal cases and saddened his staff, leaving some in tears, but the lab has drawn stinging criticism about errors and ethical problems in recent months.

"Too many things went wrong on his watch," said defense attorney Francisco Duarte, who specializes in DUI cases. "I believe he wanted to run a laboratory that was based on integrity — and ultimately, he failed to do so."

DUI attorney Ted Vosk, who has worked to uncover problems at the lab and has persuaded judges to throw out many breath-test results, said he believed Logan’s departure was appropriate.

"His stepping down now seems to represent, at least in my mind, that we were right," Vosk said.

Logan has served as the state toxicologist since 1990 and became director of the Forensic Laboratory Services Bureau — overseeing toxicology and crime labs — in 1999, managing 220 workers at eight lab locations.

On Thursday, he said he has dedicated his career "to quality evidence in DUI cases" and, after spending months trying to fix the lab’s problems, wants the public to know it "can have confidence in the results of these tests."

"I have done as much as I can," he said. "I feel that it’s going to help move things forward to have a new director."

Logan, a 46-year-old native of Scotland who is well known and respected in his field, said he remains proud of the labs’ work and takes responsibility for many of the Seattle-based toxicology lab’s errors — though he believes they were "dramatically overstated" by defense attorneys.

"With the benefit of hindsight, I can always say that I might have handled things differently," he said.

Doubts about the lab’s work surfaced last summer, when lab manager Ann Marie Gordon was accused of signing off on scientific tests she hadn’t actually done.

Some of the criticism toward Logan was about how he handled a vague tip about the wrongdoing. He assigned Gordon to investigate the matter, apparently unaware that she was the problem.

Then other errors came to light involving the same issue: how the lab tests an ethanol-water solution used to make sure breath-test machines give accurate readings. The solution is critical in tens of thousands of drunken-driving cases each year because if it’s off, people may face charges based on faulty results.

The State Patrol has maintained that inaccurate results have been extremely limited. Defense attorneys have argued that the lab’s shoddy practices call all of its work into question.

In October, two Skagit County judges challenged Logan’s credibility as they cited careless and potentially flawed work at the lab.

Last month, three King County District Court judges questioned his ability to serve as state toxicologist and found that the lab was fraught with ethical problems, scientific errors and carelessness — making all breath tests unreliable.

On Thursday, King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg said Logan built "a solid foundation" of forensic science and suggested that his resignation "is a positive step toward rebuilding the professional reputation of the lab."

Prosecutors, he said, "are eager to work with the State Patrol and the new toxicologist to make sure that they have corrected questioned administrative procedures … and ultimately restored the confidence of the court system" in breath tests as evidence.

Batiste said he would immediately begin a search to replace Logan. Crime Lab Division Manager Larry Hebert, a 34-year veteran, will take over in the interim.

The state has already appointed Fiona Couper, who most recently served as chief toxicologist in Washington, D.C., to serve as the state toxicologist.

Her job will now be a separate position from the director of the Forensic Laboratory Services Bureau because having someone fill both jobs, as Logan does, is "too much to ask of any one person," Batiste said.

P-I reporter Tracy Johnson can be reached at 206-467-5942 or tracyjohnson@seattlepi.com.
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Police in Utah DUI arrests only ask for One Test
A couple of years ago I attended the Indiana University Borkenstein Course. This is a course that Utah Breath Test technicians are required to take to qualify for their job as technicians. The taxpayer spends a lot of money on these people to take this course. The course is taught by the top scientists in the country and the world. For example, AW Jones from Sweden is probably considered as the worldwide expert on breath testing. Dr. Kurt Dubowski is probably considered the leading expert on breath testing in the nation.

All of the scientists and experts that taught at the program taught one common theme for forensic breath testing: Quality Assurance is the most important aspect of forensic breath testing. Each expert emphasized that any breath test program should employ duplicate breath testing to ensure an accurate result. The Utah Department of Public Safety chooses to ignore the quality assurance safeguards of duplicate breath testing. I have heard the excuses that it would cost too much to "we don’t have to and we don’t care." A fellow National College for DUI Defense member posted his research on states that require duplicate testing and those that don’t. http://www.wvdui.com/StateBreathMachines.asp

The interesting thing is that 27 states reported duplicate breath test requirements. 18 states still employ single breath test requirements.

If it is important to ensure that tests are accurate, that innocent people are not convicted, and to ensure that justice is served, why doesn’t Utah step up to the plate. It is not expensive, it is just a software issue. The state has recently purchased brand new Intoxilyzer 8000 machines. Those machines are designed to do duplicate testing. Yet, duplicate testing is still not employed. It seems to me that if the state employed a system to ensure accurate results, they may have to employ the idea that maybe the officer made a mistake in making the arrest.STATE

BLOWS

COMMENTS

Datamaster CDM. 15 minute observation period before test.

Drager Alcotest 7110. Both blows must be within .02 of each other and must come within one three minute breath test sequence. 20 minute deprivation period before test.

Datamaster. Law allows 2 blows, 1 is the norm. Second blow is entirely at officer’s discretion and lower result is the one required to be reported.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (64-, 66-, 68-), 8000. Two blows no less than 5 minutes, no greater than 10 minutes apart, within .02 of each other.

Multiple machines - Intoxilyzer 5000, 8000; Intoximeters EC/IR; Drager ePAS, 7410; Datamaster. Two blows within .02 of each other or a third test is required - no time limit.

Intoxilyzer 5000EN. Breath sample captured for independent retest.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (68, EN). Each blow preceded by a 15 minute observation period, with both blows being thirty minutes apart.

Intoxilyzer 5000, 8000. Unlimited time and number of tests to get two within .02 of each other. 20 minute observation period before test by administrative regulation.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (68-). Two blows required by statute and must be within .02 of each other; if one adequate sample provided, no refusal penalty for refusing second blow and state will proceed on basis of one blow. No prescribed time limits in which to obtain both samples, but machine’s software takes two minutes between tests. 20 minute observation period set forth in machine manual, but caselaw opines that any variance goes only to weight, not admissibility.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (EN); Intoxilyzer 8000 in approval process. 15 minute observation period before test.

Datamaster CDM. 15 minute observation period before test.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (66-, 68-). Blows must be within .02 of each other or a third blow is required. Blows must occur within two minutes following a 15 minute observation period.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (64-, 66-); Intoximeter EC/IR (EC/IR II coming soon), RBT IV. 20 minute observation period before test.

BAC Datamaster. 20 minute observation period before test. Arresting officer may elect blood, breath, or urine with as many tests of each as he chooses and failure to submit to any deemed a refusal. No right to independent test.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (66- ) currently in use as well as Intoxilyzer 8000. 8000 is in early stages of a two year phase-in to replace the 5000. 20 minute observation prior to test.

Intoxilyzer 5000EN. 20 minute observation period before test.

Intoxilyzer 5000EN.

Draeger 7110 MK III-C. 15 minute observation/deprivation period before test. No statutory time limit for samples to be provided but machine cycle normally 2 - 3 minutes. Samples must be within .02 of each other.

Intoximeter EC/IR. Blows must be within .02 of each other or a 3rd is required. If 3rd blow does not achieve .02 margin, all tests deemed invalid. Machine software requires blows to occur within 3 minutes of start of test sequence. 20 minute observation period before testing.

Intoxilyzer 5000 EN. Four attempts permitted to get two results within .02 of one another.

Datamaster. Regulations require two blows, 2nd coming at least two minutes after first, but courts have opined only one is necessary for “validity” so two blows not commonly seen. 15 minute observation period prior to 1st test, and 1st result must come within 2 minutes after initiation of test sequence.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (68-). 2 consecutive samples, 4 minutes for each sample to be obtained and samples must be within .02 of each other.

Intoxilyzer 5000, Datamaster. Officer may require 2 breath samples, but common practice is for 1. Implied Consent advisement does not inform that two tests are required, nor does it advise that if two are requested and only one is provided, suspension for refusal will occur. No agreement is required between the two tests if two are administered. 15 minute observation period before test.

Intoxilyzer 8000

Intoxilyzer 5000 (68-). 15 minute observation period before test.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (66-, 68-). Blows must be within .02 of each other. 15 minute observation period before test.

Datamaster CDM, Intoximeters 3000 also approved.

Intoxilyzer 5000EN. Both blows must be within .02 of each other. If not, additional tests occur until two within .02 are achieved. Breath sample captured for independent retest. 20 minute observation period before test.

Breathalyzer 900, 900A - 2 blows 6 - 15 minutes apart. Alcotest 7110 MK IIIC - 2 tests at least 2 minutes apart. 20 minute observation period by custom, not statute or regulation.

Intoxilyzer 5000EN. Samples must be within .02 of each other or a 3rd sample is obtained. If that does not fall within limits, blood draw authorized. If suspect fails to provide additional samples, 1st may be used, but forced blood draw is then permissible. No prescribed time limit to obtain samples, but 3rd and 4th must be within 2 hours for per se charge.

Datamaster, Draeger 7110. 15 minute observation period before test by administrative rule, but 20 minute period typically used across entire state.

Datamaster, Datamaster CDM, Intoxilyzer 5000 (66-, 68-, EN), 8000. 20 minute observation period before test.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (66-, EN). Both blows must be within .03 of each other and lowest value is used. All results go to 2 decimal points only. 15 minute observation period before test.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (68-). 15 minute observation period prior to test. *Intoxilyzer 8000 being implemented and will require two blows, two minutes apart with samples being within 10% of one another.

Intoxilyzer 5000 (all models), BAC Datamaster. 20 minute observation period before test. No specified time between breath samples. Breath samples must be within .02 of each other. Emerging movement towards blood testing.

Intoxilyzer 5000. Both blows must be 30 minutes apart.

Datamaster. Entire breath test process must be videotaped, including implied consent warning and 20 minute observation period prior to test.

Intoximeters EC/IR and EC/IR II and, to a limited extent, Intoxilyzer 1400

Intoxilyzer 5000 EN. 15 minute observation/deprivation period before test. Breath samples must be given within three minutes of each other and must be within .02 of each other.

Intoxilyzer 5000, 8000. 15 minute observation period before test.

Intoxilyzer 5000. Both blows within three minutes of each other based on machine software, though no legal requirement for time of obtaining samples. Blows must be within .02 of each other or a third blow is required. 20 minute observation period before test.

Datamaster. 15 minute observation period before the test is a byproduct of both common law and regulation.

Datamaster and Datamaster CDM

Intoximeters EC/IR. Both blows must be within .02 of each other. 20 minute observation period prior to testing.

Intoximeters EC/IR II. 20 minute observation period prior to testing.

Intoximeters EC/IR. Three tries to get two blows within .02 of each other. 15 minute observation period prior to testing.

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DUI Probable Cause: Created by presence of police officers
In a recent blog post at DUI Blog, Lawrence Taylor discusses "black and white fever." In my experience, both personally and professionally, it is true. (…)
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Publication:Standard Examiner; Date:Jan 11, 2008; Section:Opinion; Page Number:4A

Utah’s justice system needs repair

What’s wrong with the justice system?

Prosecutors are overly aggressive and seek convictions at any cost to further their careers, and different levels of law enforcement are abusive to inmates. The system has corrupt officers who hide behind their badges while breaking the law, and a judge who failed to recuse himself from a trial due to friendship with the victim’s family.

There are people who are innocent and are sent to prison, and people who have mental disabilities and need help but are sent to jail or prison without getting the help they need.

The state then asks for more federal funding, and our taxes are raised because a new prison needs to be built.

The problem is there is not one elected official who is willing to step up to the plate and recognize that there is a problem, nor do they use their position to promote a healthy, safe rehabilitation program within the prison or jail. They have the feeling that prison is a problem with no solution.

The temptation is always to look away, hoping the troubles inside the walls will not affect us.

Every day people go to prison, but the public knows very little about their conditions of confinement (rape, abuse by officers, infectious diseases, etc.) and whether they are being punished in ways that no jury ever intended. Unless the experience of incarceration becomes real through the confinement of a loved one, the people inside the confined walls are far removed from daily concerns.

Bonnie Terry

West Haven

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Tags: mo missouri divorce immigration dui attorney russi, felony dui, ocala dui attorney, san diego dui attorney, matt rolloff dui

Follow UP to Officer’s getting their own Utah DUIs! (DUI)

Jamie — Tue, 06 Jan 2009 15:30:29 +0000

Follow UP to Officer’s getting their own Utah DUIs!
So here is a follow up on the story from yesterday. The interesting thing about this case is that the officer was never found guilty of DUI. However, his department presumed him guilty and fired him anyway. It’s interesting that the police don’t even respect the sacred presumption of innocence even when dealing with their own. The story reads that the office was fired for DUI, yet no DUI was ever prosecuted. Got to love that.

U officer fired for DUI
By: Ana Breton
Posted: 3/26/08
A former officer at the U Police Department had his peace officer certification suspended for the next three years after he was arrested for drunken driving.

Officer Tory Park’s certification was suspended by the Utah Peace Officer Standards and Training Council, which establishes and upholds rules of conduct for the state’s certified peace officers. Officers are given the certification after they graduate from a police academy and keep their accreditation by completing 40 hours of training in their department and follow POST council standards.

The council suspended Park’s certification during its quarterly conference during the weekend. There, the council suspended the certifications of 29 other officers in Utah. Park was the only officer punished from a university police department in the state.

Lt. Steve Winward, POST bureau chief of investigations said Park’s certification was suspended after the council found that he had been arrested for driving under the influence last year. Winward said Park was arrested on May 26 after he crashed his personal vehicle into a road sign when he was off duty. Winward said there was not enough evidence to convict him in court for DUI, but that Park plead guilty to leaving the scene of an accident and reckless driving.

"They took the alcohol charges out, because it would have been hard to prove the case to determine if he drank before or during the accident," Winward said.

Capt. Lynn Mitchell at the U Police Department said that Park was terminated and quickly replaced after he was arrested.

"It’s disheartening. We arrest people who violate laws, so we don’t want our people to be doing those kinds of things, for crying out loud," Mitchell said. "We arrest people for DUI, but that doesn’t give us permission to do it ourselves."

Although Mitchell declined to comment about the specific POST case because it involved disciplinary action, he said that Park is not the first officer to have a peace officer certification suspended at the police department.

"It’s not a first," Mitchell said. "But then again we’ve been here since 1958, so we’ve gone through a lot of officers."

Mitchell said the last time a U officer’s certification was suspended was about four years ago. Park’s termination "almost went unnoticed," Mitchell said.

Without certification, an officer is unable to take a position at a police department in the state of Utah. Additionally, Mitchell said that Park will not have a chance to train every year, so if he wants to come back into the field, he will have to pass the entire certification process again.

"Tory was a nice guy. I feel bad for him," Mitchell said. "But I can’t respect that."

The 30 Utah officers who were accused of breaking POST ethical rules might be the highest number of officers disciplined in recent history.

Winward said the POST council has been understaffed because several officers have been absent because of personal reasons, such as surgery, and that "cases kept getting backlogged." The council’s next meeting is in June.
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