The contents of the DUI blood draw memo are shocking in light of a recent Supreme Court decision in which the court ruled that, in order for DUI blood test evidence to be admitted at trial, the defense must be entitled to confront and cross-examine the DUI blood draw technician who administered the blood test in order to ensure that proper blood draw procedures were followed.
San Diego DUI attorney Rick Mueller obtained the internal DUI blood draw memo from a San Diego blood draw technician. Specifically, the memo briefs technicians on what to say if they do not remember drawing blood from a particular defendant. The DUI blood draw memo advises as follows:
- technicians do not have to remember drawing blood from a particular defenant;
- to testify that, do to the high number of blood draw patients each day, it is not possible to remember each individual blood draw;
- the technician or expert simply needs to testify that the proper procedure was followed in a particular case because they follow the procedure in every case;
- to always testify that a non-alcoholic sterile wipe since an alcohol wipe can compromise the test results.
The DUI blood draw memo puts great emphasis on the need to testify that the proper blood draw procedures are always followed and, therefore, they had to have been followed in any particular case.
"The important things to remember is that you always follow the same procedure, so even though you don't remember this particular individual, you know that you drew the person following our standard procedure."
In essence, the DUI blood draw memo's instructions to experts and technicians to recite boilerplate testimony without specific recollection and knowledge of the facts of the case in which they are testifying completely undermines the necessity of a DUI attorney to call them as a witness. If a DUI blood draw technician cannot remember the specific facts regarding the DUI defendant's blood draw, then the blood evidence should be excluded from evidence at trial. Period.
Written by Gabriel Dorman
Los Angeles, California
gabedorman@gmail.com
www.criminaldefenseduilawyer.com/blog/
Exclusively for HULIQ.com
Posted October 28th, 2009 by Gabriel Dorman
