Very common digestive conditions can inject extra alcohol into breath samples when DUI suspects are being tested… leading to wrongful DUI arrests and charges.
Most California DUI arrests and prosecutions depend on evidence of a person’s blood alcohol content (BAC). To generate this evidence, law enforcement agencies commonly administer DUI breath tests.
Many simple factors interfere with the accuracy of DUI breath tests. Among these are gastrointestinal (“GI”) conditions such as:
- gastroesophageal reflux disease (“GERD”),
- heartburn,
- acid reflux,
- indigestion, and
- regurgitation.
GERD occurs when stomach acid or, occasionally, stomach content, flows back into your food pipe (esophagus). GERD and other GI conditions can be temporary or chronic.
GI conditions can cause breath samples to contain digestive gases with traces of alcohol. These conditions can thus “trick” DUI breath devices into a falsely high BAC reading. Someone who is really a .05, for example, can register a breath test reading of a .15.
Our Los Angeles DUI Lawyers know that breath testing errors caused by GERD and other GI conditions lead to wrongful DUI arrests and charges. But we’ve also been able to us this fact to win many DUI cases, both in court and at the DMV.
GERD and acid reflux are lesser-known California DUI defenses. That’s why the first step we take in every California DUI case is to perform a full client interview so we can find out what will help a client as early as possible.
Challenging the results of your DUI breath or blood test is just one of the ways we help clients throughout Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside and Ventura Counties.
If you have been charged with DUI and you suspect GERD or acid relflux led to a tainted breath sample, contact us for a free and confidential consultation. Find out how we can help you.