Massachusetts DUI Law : Mass Lawyer & Attorney for Drunk Driving Arrests in Boston, Worcester, Framingham

In the recent Massachusetts DUI case of Commonwealth v. Parmenter, (November 24, 2009), Marlborough District Court Judge Noonan excluded evidence regarding the DUI defendant’s alcohol levels which were determined from blood drawn while the defendant was airlifted from the scene of an OUI accident to the hospital. The blood alcohol evidence was excluded based on the Supreme Court’s decision in Melendez-Dias v. Massachusetts, 129 S. Ct. 2531 (2009).

Judge Noonan ruled that the blood alcohol evidence will be inadmissible at Parmenter’s DUI trial unless the Commonwealth produces the medical personnel who drew the blood. The laboratory personnel who tested the blood should also be required to testify.

In Melendez-Dias v. Massachusetts, the Supreme Court held that the introduction of laboratory certifications without making available the scientist who conducted the laboratory tests violates the confrontation clause of the U.S. Constitution which gives criminal defendants the right to confront and cross-examine adverse witnesses. The Melendez-Dias decision may prove to be a powerful tool in Massachusetts DUI cases.

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The Massachusetts State Police, in partnership with a local police agency, will conduct a field sobriety DUI roadblock on a secondary state highway in Middlesex County on during the evening of Saturday, December 19, 2009 into Sunday, December 20^th.

The Mass. State Police are equipped with a mobile breathalyzer and OUI booking facility called the “BAT Mobile.” In accordance with judicially approved DUI roadblock procedures, state and local police officers will stop drivers to detect signs and symptoms of intoxication. Officers will have a brief conversation with the driver of the stopped vehicle, during which time they will be looking for slurred speech, glassy or bloodshot eyes, the odor of alcoholic beverages, open containers of alcohol, or any other indicators that the driver might be operating under the influence of intoxicants.

If the police suspect intoxication or other criminal activity, drivers will be directed to a “secondary screening area” where they will be ordered to produce a driver’s license and subjected to additional screening which may include standardized field sobriety tests.

Based on all of the facts and circumstances of the encounter, including the results of the field sobriety tests, the police will decide whether there is probable cause to arrest the driver for DUI. Anyone arrested will be booked and offered the opportunity to submit to a chemical breath test. The penalty for refusing is a license suspension ranging from 180 days to life. Those who are arrested and refuse will only have 15 days from the date of arrest to appeal the breathalyzer refusal suspension. Failure to appeal during the 15 day CTR appeal period will result in the inability to challenge many aspects of the refusal suspension.

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