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How to make an illegal test legal? |
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Wednesday, 18 April 2007 |
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In the State v. Snyder, A06A2225, March 20, 2007, the Georgia Court of Appeals held that an illegal blood test made without arrest for DUI under Hough v. State. 279 Ga. 711 (2005) can be become legal under Hough, supra,
if a personal involved in the accident subsequent to the accident
dies. In this case, the Defendant was not seriously injured and
in a neck brace and the Officer gave the driver a portable breath test
on the alcosensor which was positive for alcohol. No field
evaluations were done as the driver was in an ambulance so there was
not sufficient probable cause to arrest for DUI based on a positive
result on an alcosensor. The passenger was seemly unhurt with
lacerations on his face and was transported to the hospital, but
several days later died. The Court of Appeals held that it does
not matter when he died just that he died. Interestly enough,
there is no mention of how the State linked the death to the DUI
accident without testimony from a qualified medical professional.
There is no evidence that any doctor or other health professional
testified at all. This means that if an illegal test is
administered without arrest and an injured party to the accident dies
or there x-rays come back with a fracture weeks or even months later,
an illegal test of the blood breath or urine can magically become legal
and apparently without testimony from a qualified medical professional
establishing a casual link between the DUI accident and death or
serious injury. We can only hope for cert. to the Supreme
Court.
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