Under New York State law, drunk driving can be two separate offenses. A per se DWI is punishable under Vehicle and Traffic Law 1192.2. It means no matter if you have the ability to walk a tightrope, walk a unicycle on top of the tightrope, juggle flaming swords, do a somersault, if your blood alcohol content is 0.08 or greater, no matter your ability to drive a car, walk a tightrope, juggle, you are considered guilty of drunk driving in New York State. It is a per se automatic blood alcohol content reading. This conclusion is derived from a chemical test given by the police officer.
Most chemical tests in New York State are called breathalyzers. They take a sample of your breath, put it into a machine, and the machine will then calculate what probably would be your blood alcohol content. Per se DWI requires a chemical test reading. The chemical test involves an intoxilyzer. It’s a machine that takes breath sample when you blow into a tube, it fills another tube inside this machine with your breath, then they shine a light on one end of the tube and measure how long it takes the light to travel from one end of the tube to the other end. The longer it takes means more density in the breath or gas. The more density in the gas, the higher the blood alcohol content this machine calculates. It’s far from accurate in my opinion. There are many defenses to it. You must make sure that breathalyzer is properly maintained, calibrated, repaired, and then operated properly.
If you are in need of legal counsel in New York State, please feel free to contact Grunwald & Seman, P.C. and we would be happy to assist you.
