NACDL

Challenging the Blood Test for Alcohol

Many practitioners, when receiving a new DUI client, can easily conceive of the challenges they could mount if the client took a breath test: Mouth Alcohol, Radio Frequency Interference, and Interfering Substances, to name a few. But if the client took a blood test, these same practitioners throw up their hands and concede the chemical test result. It does not have to be this way. There are a number of weaknesses in the collection and analysis of blood samples that can be exploited to create doubt as to the accuracy of the blood test result. This article will provide the practitioner with a variety of tools to challenge blood test results.

One systematic way to present these strategies is to track the blood sample from collection to analysis to reporting.

Collection Materials

Start by looking at the materials that were used to collect the blood specimen. It makes a difference if inappropriate materials were used. Most agencies that draw blood for fo