Pennsylvania Blood Testing

There are three types of chemical tests that Pennsylvania police officers may ask you to submit to if they suspect you have been driving under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol. These are blood, breath and urine tests. Of the three, blood tests are considered to be the most accurate when determining a person’s blood alcohol content or BAC (the amount of alcohol found in your bloodstream). However, just because you may have failed a blood test by being over the state’s legal limit of .08%, this does not mean you should automatically plead guilty to DUI! Instead, contact our lawyers right away.

While blood tests have the support of the medical and scientific community as being an accurate way of determining a person’s BAC, many mistakes can occur. For starters, when police ask you to submit to a chemical test they will likely suggest the breath test—this is the only test that can be administered by the police. However, you have every right to request a urine or blood test and these tests must be conducted at a hospital or medical center by qualified medical staff. Every state has regulations on who is allowed to administer a blood test and your attorney can dispute the evidence of your blood test results if an unqualified person administered your blood test.

The state of Pennsylvania in particular also has laws regarding who is allowed to analyze and transport your blood sample and also how the test is performed. That’s why it’s imperative to review such facts with your attorney. Only a qualified DUI defense attorney will know whether or not the legal procedures were followed.

Because there is so much chance for human error involving blood tests, don’t think for a minute that your test results can’t be challenged in court. For example, in some cases blood test samples become tainted and can significantly change the results of your blood test. How can such evidence be brought against you when no one is certain what your real BAC was at the time you were driving?

So before you plead guilty to DUI, contact a professional attorney!