Back calculation advice please

[redzed]

hi folks

Firstly, I must apologise for the very long post.

As usual a new member here seeking advice which I would very much appreciate. This is my first offence of any kind and am only aware of the following information etc after carrying out a hell of a lot of research following my arrest.

Almost a week ago I was arrested on suspicion off dd. I had gone for a long drive in my car after an arguement at home and had decided to drive to a well known town on the west coast which is always full of tourists and has hundreds of B&B's. My intention was to drive there, get drunk and stay overnight, simply to get away from home. I drove into a car park, put my steering wheel disc lock on then had a drink of vodka which I had stupidly brought along with me. I got out of my car, stood there for a few mins trying to send a text but failed as it's a new phone and I didn't really know how to use it. All of a sudden a police car pulled into the almost empty car park, a policeman jumped out of his car, I stupidly tried to run a few yards and I couldn't give a reason for this but subsequently I thought that it may well of been due to my rather exuberent driving in an empty car park and thought that was the reason for the attendance of the police(couldn't run anyway-cruciate). I then think that he may have asked if I had been drinking, which I said yes, I've just had a drink in the car which I later worked out to be 202 ml of vodka, which is 8 units of alcohol. The policeman said that he had been alerted to my presence in the car park whilst watching on the cctv and also hearing a loud car, which my car is. Whilst watching me texting he also saw me stumble and thought that I must be drunk but I stumble all of the time now as I've got a ruptured cruciate ligament in my knee which is all documented by my local hospital and gp etc. I was then arrested and taken to a police station which was 21 miles away. I was booked in then had a breath test which read 64. I wasn't breath tested in the car park next to my car. The elapsed time from me getting out of my car to doing the breath test in the police station must have been at least 40 mins. Using 2 different route planners the estimated time to travel that distance is 30 mins, at least 5 mins had elapsed from getting out of my car to being arrested and put in the police car and at least another 5 mins had elapsed from entering the police station to doing the breath test. So that's where I get the overall time of 40 mins from leaving my car to doing the breath test.

I spent the night in a cell, was interviewed at 9.30am the following morning when I told them how much I had drank in the car (8 units), I also told them that I had taken 2 x 5mg diazepam tablets 30 mins before my arrival in the car park which in hindsight I shouldn't have told them. I was eventually released at 2.30pm when my brother came to pick me up as they thought it would be best for my own well being due to my mental health problems. They had also asked me to see the nurse in the station regarding my mental health problems as it had been evident to them that I needed checking out. When I was signing the neccesary forms to leave the station the seargent said that they would ask the traffic officers if it had been possible to absorb the alcohol from the drink in my car in the noted time which would therefore account for my reading of 64 in the station and they would therefore know if I had been over the limit when driving or sitting in my car. They would, after me trawling the net for information, be apparently using a count back estimate/calculation. I was then bailed to appear at the same station in approx 4 weeks time. I must also say that I haven't been charged with anything, they never took a sample of my blood and they never made me do a Field Impairment Test.

I've formulated the following points in my defence.

1) how can a traffic policeman be employed at all to carry out or provide his opinion with regard to the count-back procedure when a qualified scientist/expert must be used?

2) how can anyone even do a count-back calculation unless they know my weight and BMI? I understand that the BMI must be known as a greater fat content in the body can account for a quicker absorbance of alcohol into the blood.

3) I didn't drink the alcohol in the car to try and obstruct the police as I understand many people will do in order to blame their DD on that drink as I wasn't even aware of their presence. If I had been aware of their presence I would surely have rushed away from my car instead of standing there for a few mins texting.

4) There was no evidence at all to indicate that I wasn't going to stay the night as there are hundreds of B+B's and hotels in the town. I had also attached my steering wheel lock and told them that I was going to get some food then look for a place to stay. They could say that I didn't buy a parking ticket so may not have intended to stay but all of these car parks are free in the evening and I didn't even have any change on me to buy a ticket which can be confirmed when they booked in my possessions at the station.

5) No Field Impairment Test carried out to determine how the diazepam had possibily impaired my driving ability. I had take the diazepam 30 mins before parking up so maybe it hadn't taken effect by then.

I've got a long history of depression/anxiety etc and have been seeing a psychiatrist, my gp and a counsellor.

I would be extremely grateful for any advice.

 

[redzed]

I forgot to say that I'm so ashamed of drinking any alcohol at all in my car, I will never ever forget this awful experience. Even if you have parked your car, keep well away from that drivers seat no matter how much you've had to drink.

 

[SeanJoyceStephensons]

To answer your questions in order:
1) A Police Officer is not qualified to carry out a BAC calculation. I suspect what the sergeant meant was that the police officers will arrange for one to be done by a suitably qualified forensic expert.
2) An accurate calculation would ordinarily require information relating to your weight and other attributes such as age, gender, etc. They will usually also ask about food consumed in the preceeding 24 hours. You would need to be as accurate as possible in your instructions about what you drank, how much and when. I would make a written note of this information now as your memory will fade with time. It will also be useful evidence if you are able to say you made a relatively contemporaneous note of this information a few days after the event, when potentially giving evidence in court in a few months time.
3) & 4) - Good points that can be made in your defence at trial.
5) There is no need for a field impairment test. They obtained a breath sample which they will rely on to prove that you were over the prescribed limit. They would only need a field impairment test if they were alleging you were unfit to drive in the absence of an excessive alcohol reading.

Finally, they will also need to prove that you actually drove the vehicle if they prosecute you for Drink Driving. They could try to do this based on your admissions but are far more likely to prosecute you for Drunk in charge, in which case you would need forensic evidence to prove when you would have been below the prescribed limit and would then need to prove, on the balance of probabilities (rather than beyond reasonable doubt) that you had no intention of driving prior to that time).

If you would like to discuss your case in more depth then call our helpline and speak to one of our specialist lawyers on 08450020736

 

[redzed]

Many thanks for your reply Sean I very much appreciate.
There is an experiment that can be done to calculate your exact rate of alcohol elimination. However, this can be time consuming and, without legal aid, you would have to fund the cost of it yourself.