Intoxilyzer 5000 Receives State-Wide Ban in Pennsylvania
After the ruling of a Dauphin County Judge in Pennsylvania concerning the accuracy of the Intoxilyzer 5000, PA state police have now issued a state-wide ban on the breath-testing machine. Previously only local police had issued the machine, but now no one in Pennsylvania pulled over for DUI will be asked to take an Intoxilyzer test. […]
SUTTON V. STATE – A12A2223: Measuring the Reliability of Anonymous Informants
Sutton v. State (2013) – Georgia Court of Appeals In late 2010, an informant by the alias “It” contacted the Flowery Branch Police Department with allegations that Eric Sutton was using and distributing illegal drugs. “It” claimed to have received his information from “Source A” as identified in the affidavit. “It” had a personal relationship […]
STALLINGS V. STATE – A12A1929: Gauging the Influence of Objectionable Evidence Presented to a Jury
Stallings v. State (2013) – Georgia Court of Appeals At 1:00 a.m. on March 26, 2011, a DeKalb County Police Officer responded to a call about a driver asleep at the wheel of an intersection. Upon reaching the intersection, the officer saw Dominique Stallings’ vehicle, which fit the description, parked irregularly in a nearby parking […]
COGHLAN V. STATE – A12A2388 – The Nature of Evidence in a DUI Investigation
Coghlan v. State (2013) – Georgia Court of Appeals Around 2:00 a.m. on September 16, 2006, Donna J. Coghlan was pulled over for driving on the wrong side of the road. The officer approached the vehicle and noticed a strong odor of alcohol. When he took Coghlan’s license and walked back to his patrol car to […]
CRIDER v. STATE – A12A2414: The Gray-Areas of Miranda and Initial DUI Investigations
Crider v. State (2013) – Georgia Court of Appeals Terri Crider was pulled over for failure to maintain the lane. When the officer made contact with Crider, he noticed the odor of alcohol on her breath, bloodshot and glassy eyes, and slightly slurred speech. Crider admitted to having been drinking and even said that she was […]
Concern Grows Over Accuracy of Intoxilyzer 8000 and Other CMI, Inc. Breathing Testing Machines
Advancements in technology are supposed to mean just that: advancement, improvement. New generations of machines are meant to be stronger, sleeker, more reliable, more efficient, and more accurate than the last generation. Unfortunately, CMI, Inc., the company that manufactures the Intoxilyzer line of breath-testing machines, is bucking the trend. Since as early as 2009 there have […]
Seated Field Sobriety Tests May Expose Questions of Reliability in Standard FSTs
Local officers in Pell City, Alabama have been trained and certified to conduct sit-down field sobriety tests to help investigate boating under the influence (BUI) on the nearby Coosa River. Proponents claim these sit-down tests could be used in roadside investigations as well: “the seated tests are useful if during a traffic stop the person […]
Florida v. Jardines: stop sniffing my curtilage
In Florida v. Jardines, United State Supreme Court, Docket No. 11-564, Mar 26, 2013, Scalia, J., delivered the opinion of the Court in a 5 to 4 decision, in which Thomas, Ginsburg, Sotomayor, and Kagan, JJ., joined. Kagan, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which Ginsburg and Sotomayor, JJ., joined. Alito, J., filed a dissenting opinion, […]