The Intoxilyzer

Operating the Breath Instrument (Intoxilyzer) Correctly

 

An excellent decision was provided by Judge Higgerty in Edson, Alberta. The defence counsel in the case was Alan Pearse.

Burping into the Intoxilyzer

The evidence was that the Accused was taken out of the phone room after speaking with a lawyer and asked to provide a breath sample. Given that 15 minutes had not elapsed between being taken out of the phone room and positive evidence that the accused had not burped the judge had reasonable doubt that the machine was not being operated properly. Here is an excerpt:

Depending on whether one is a defence lawyer or a prosecutor, one tends to refer to an Intoxilyzer as a machine or an instrument; being an ex-prosecutor, I will refer to it as an instrument. Certainly a very precise instrument authorized by Parliament to be the centrepiece, if you will, a tool of great use in weeding out impaired drivers on the road, but the fact remains that in many cases an accused is being convicted by an instrument. And I only say that, and it is perhaps a bit of an exaggeration, a bit of a stretch, but I say that in all seriousness because that underscores that the instrument must be operated correctly in order to bring it within the parameters of the Criminal Code of Canad which essentially allows hearsay evidence, a certificate, to be essentially the entire case against an accused.

The requirement is 15 minutes, as set out by the manufacturer, although it seems to be acknowledged by the case law that in most cases 5 minutes would be sufficient, but the manufacturer says 15 minutes. And there is a very good reason for this, the presence of mouth alcohol can result in an unreliable reading.

I did have a question earlier on, and I can perhaps answer my own question, does the accused have to adduce positive evidence that he burped or belched or chewed on a cough drop, that type of thing, during that 15-minute run-up to the first sample and, indeed, I suppose, prior to the second sample as well? And in the real world, given that Officer Jackson had difficulty on the subject of slurred speech, how could we expect an ordinary accused to remember if he or she burped within the 15 minutes prior to providing a sample? So I find that this 15-minute requirement is just as important for the operator to ensure as flipping the right switch at the right time. The 15-minute requirement is an integral part of the operation of the Intoxilyzer and the manufacturer’s requirement was not complied with. I will not speculate as to, and I am lapsing into the vernacular, aw, shucks, golly, it does not mean that much anyway. I will not go there. The facts, to me, are the instrument was operated incorrectly, the manufacturer required that 15 minutes, that 15 minutes was not observed and, therefore, in my view, the instrument was not operated correctly and the presumption cannot be relied upon. Therefore, on the over 08 charge, I also find the accused not guilty.

For a copy of the decision please contact my office at 780-429-4004.Intoxilyzer