BY BOB HOLT

NEWJERSEYNEWSROOM.COM

Back in 2001, a machine known as Alcotest replaced the Breathalyzers that were used in determining a driver’s alcohol levels. Results of the Alcotest were challenged in court in later years, and the Supreme Court called for modifications to the machine’s software in 2008.

New Jersey DWI attorneys Evan Levow and Matthew Reisig say the changes haven’t gotten done.

Levow questions the validity of the state’s DWI convictions for that reason. “Alcotest is scientifically unreliable because the state never made the changes,” Levow said, according to CBS Philly. “They haven’t even tried.” The case is currently being heard in state Supreme Court.

The New Jersey Supreme Court ordered nine changes in software changes in March 2008, according to Digital Journal.  Levow and Reisig argue that since the modifications have not yet been made, the machine can no longer be used in state DWI cases.

Also, Levow notes that minimum breath volume for the test is 1.5 liters. CBS Philly reported that the 2008 ruling called for the Alcotest machines to be reprogrammed to lower the minimum to 1.2 liters for women over 60. Levow says that hasn’t happened.

In the 2008 ruling from state vs. Jane Chun, the state was required to build a database online that posted accurate test results. According to NorthJersey.com, Levow says the data is unsearchable and sometimes deletes errors that could show machine malfunctions.

Levow notes that discarding the Alcotest devices would not harm any DWI cases in the future. Every day in municipal court, breath tests are suppressed all the time,” Levow said, according to NJ.com. “What happens then is the state has to rely on observational evidence.”

A ruling may come in the next few months.