If you take a breath test during a traffic stop and it shows that you have a BAC that is over 0.08%, you are likely going to be arrested on impaired driving charges. This is the level where the court can presume you are impaired because your intoxication has reached a certain predetermined point.
That said, many people just assume that they are definitely going to be convicted after taking a breath test. This is not always the case. You can actually challenge your breath test for a few different reasons.
The device was not calibrated
To begin with, a breath test device has to be calibrated to ensure that it is accurate. If the police department has neglected to calibrate the breath tests, it is unclear if the results that they provide actually demonstrate what your BAC level was at the time of arrest.
The officer made a mistake
You could also argue that the officer, perhaps because they did not get any breath test training, made significant mistakes while administering that test. If it seemed like they did not know what they were doing and they made serious errors, they could have artificially inflated the results.
The device was the wrong model
Finally, courts recognize that only certain breathalyzer devices are reliable. Specific brands have been prohibited, and courts have ruled that they are “not scientifically reliable” in the past. So one important thing to check is simply to ensure that the officer used an approved breath test device in the first place.
These are just three reasons to challenge a breath test out of many potential tactics. Just be sure you understand all of your legal defense options when facing DUI charges in Georgia.