Jump to full article: PR Newswire, 2009-09-28
Author: SOURCE The Law Offices of Lawrence Taylor
Intro: Los Angeles DUI attorney Lawrence Taylor, author of the legal textbook Drunk Driving Defense, claims that smokers arrested for DUI may have false high results from breathalyzer tests.
Breath machines don't actually measure alcohol, Taylor says. They are actually designed to detect any compound containing the methyl group in its molecular structure and to assume that it is alcohol. They cannot distinguish the difference between alcohol and, among many other compounds, acetaldehyde.
Acetaldehyde is produced in the liver in small amounts as a by-product in the metabolism of alcohol. Unfortunately, the DUI lawyer says, alcohol moving from the blood into the lungs has been found to metabolize there as well. And scientists have found that acetaldehyde concentrations in the lungs of smokers are greater than for non-smokers - far greater. Translated: smokers arrested for DUI are more likely to have falsely high readings on a breathalyzer. "Origin of Breath Acetaldehyde During Ethanol Oxidation: Effect of Long-Term Cigarette Smoking", 100 Journal of Laboratory Clinical Medicine 908.
The Los Angeles DUI lawyer points to another scientific study that found cigarette smoking can influence absorption by the body of alcohol -- and thus attempts to estimate earlier blood alcohol levels when driving based upon levels when tested. Johnson et al., "Cigarette Smoking and Rate of Gastric Emptying: Effect on Alcohol Absorption", 302 British Medical Journal 20. . . .
With a national reputation and the highest professional ratings, The Law Offices of Lawrence Taylor has specialized in DUI defense exclusively for 29 years.
Jump to full article » |