Opinion ID: 2170833
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Sufficiency of Verdoorn's Rebuttal Evidence

Text: Verdoorn's rebuttal of the director's case was based on expert testimony asserting a metabolic curve defense. The expert, Dr. William Watson, made a toxicological assessment of Verdoorn's blood alcohol concentration in light of the fact that Verdoorn drank as many as six beers in the 25 minutes before his vehicle was stopped. Dr. Watson testified to a reasonable degree of toxicological certainty that Verdoorn's blood alcohol level was below .126 at the time of the stop and that it was equally likely his level was above or below the legal limit of .10%. Verdoorn presented no evidence that his blood alcohol concentration was in fact below the legal limit at the time he was stopped. The expert's testimony showed only that Verdoorn could have been intoxicated or that his blood alcohol concentration might not have reached the limit of.10% by the time he was stopped. This inconclusive testimony was insufficient to rebut the presumption of intoxication established by the director's prima facie case. The judgment is reversed. All concur.