Opinion ID: 1345955
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Adequacy of the Replicate Testing Procedure

Text: The primary issue in this case is whether the procedure used by the Tucson police, and the instructions given to the defendants at the time their breath was tested, were sufficient to satisfy the due process guarantees of Baca. We find that the Baca requirements were satisfied. As even defendants agree, the state is free to utilize replicate testing under the Arizona Implied Consent Statute, A.R.S. § 28-691. This statute provides that tests of ... blood, breath, or urine for the purpose of determining the alcohol or drug content of ... blood are appropriate, at the choice of the law enforcement agency. A.R.S. § 28-691(A). The statute does not specify the precise test that must be used. However, defendants argue that despite the fact that replicate testing may be used for the state's primary breath test, due process guarantees of the Arizona Constitution and case law still require the state to preserve a breath sample for a defendant's independent analysis. Even if due process requires that defendants in a DUI case be given the opportunity to challenge the accuracy of the state's evidence, we do not agree that a captured breath sample is the only method that will satisfy due process. Any method that is reasonably reliable will suffice. It is generally agreed that a blood test is the most accurate measure of how much alcohol is in a person's system. See, e.g., ERWIN, § 17.01, at 17-2 to 17-3, § 18.01, at 18-2. We therefore hold that a blood sample satisfies the requirements of Baca. Here, the defendants were offered the choice of replicate breath testing with no breath sample preserved, or a blood test at state expense, where the sample would be preserved and available to the defendant for independent testing. In addition, the police went even further and informed defendants that they had the right to an independent test at their own expense. Because the reason defendants are given a sample is to allow them to challenge the accuracy of the state's evidence, it is irrelevant whether the sample given is a breath sample or a blood sample, as long as it is reasonably accurate. We hold that defendants waived their right to an independent sample when they rejected the offered blood test and sample and chose to have their breath tested after the police advised them that submission to replicate testing would result in no breath sample being saved for later analysis. See Mongan v. Pima County Superior Court, 148 Ariz. 486, 487-88, 715 P.2d 739, 740-41 (1986) (DUI suspect may waive the right to an independent breath sample, as long as the waiver is intelligently and voluntarily made); see also Baca, 124 Ariz. at 356, 604 P.2d at 620. Davis argues that the information provided to him was insufficient to enable him to knowingly, intelligently, and voluntarily waive his rights because the police officer failed to explain what the absence of a breath sample would mean to his defense if he chose the breath test. We are not persuaded. Each defendant was told of his right to demand a blood test with preserved sample and was told that if he chose replicate breath testing there would be no sample. The information given by the police was adequate to satisfy due process. The police are not in the business of giving legal advice, nor will we put them in that position. To require police officers to attempt to explain to a defendant what the absence of a breath sample would mean to his or her case would be to require them to practice law.