When arrested for a DUI by the Scottsdale Police Department, officers usually opt to draw a person’s blood to determine the blood alcohol content (BAC). This past year, defense attorneys uncovered problems with testing procedures and equipment within the Scottsdale Police Department Crime Lab.
In August of 2013, a Maricopa County Superior Court Commissioner issued a ruling stating blood test results would be inadmissible in 11 Aggravated DUI cases. This ruling was due to the Scottsdale Police Department Crime Lab’s malfunctioning gas chromatograph, which was used to determine the BAC in the blood samples. Problems arose in 2009, when a Scottsdale crime lab supervisor took it upon himself to use software from an old machine on a newer model gas chromatograph as everyone was used to interpreting the old reports. In the summer of 2010, this same supervisor determined that the old software was incompatible with the new machine which led to several problems being discovered with the newer machine; some such errors were mislabeling vials of blood, the machine would stop running properly in the middle of testing and would erase baseline information during test runs.
While this ruling does not necessarily mean that the 11 Aggravated DUI cases will be dismissed, it does show that there are several problems within the Scottsdale Police Department Crime Lab and that no testing process is 100% accurate. These problems would have gone unnoticed without experienced, diligent attorneys leaving no stone unturned.
If you have been charged with a DUI in Scottsdale, contact our office at 480.889.8909 for your free consultation and to explore whether or not you have been the victim of unreliable and faulty lab work.