medication causes false sobriety test

Summary:  Alleged drunk driver used medication (Primatine Mist) before being tested; Attorney Fred Slone gets charges dismissed.

Drunk driving can be referred to by several acronyms: DUI DWI OWI OUI.

state of alaska vs. A. S., district court, kenai alaska

private property parking after drinking

A. S. is a heavy equipment operator. He and his wife had traveled to Kenai for a sport fishing weekend. As they were unable to find a public campsite, they pulled onto some rural private property and were going to camp there. A. S. had admittedly been drinking some alcohol that evening. Shortly after he parked his van he and his wife were getting ready to set up camp.

state police trooper accesses private property

A state trooper pulled his patrol vehicle onto a driveway leading to the property. The trooper walked past A. S.'s vehicle and through a gate in the driveway leading to the private property. He then saw A. S. and made contact with him.

police administer breath test & make arrest

The officer allegedly administered field "sobriety tests" which A. S. allegedly failed. The officer arrested A. S. for driving while intoxicated and took him to a police station. A breath test was administered with a .192 result.

slone hired to defend against drunk driving allegations

A. S. retained Mr. Slone to represent him in the criminal case.

prior dwi means jail time

A. S. had one prior DWI conviction within the last 10 years, and faced a minimum 20 day jail term and a minimum 1 year license revocation if convicted.

police recordings reveal use of medication

Attorney Fred Slone obtained discovery materials from the State, including an audio recording of the events that transpired at the station. A careful review of the audio recording indicated that A. S. had taken a shot of Primatine Mist inhaler approximately 3 ½ minutes before blowing into the breath testing device.

slone motions to suppress evidence

Attorney Slone filed a pretrial motion to suppress the breath test evidence on the grounds that the officer failed to comply with a regulation which requires that the arrestee not have anything in his or her mouth during the 15 minutes immediately before the breath test is administered.

search without warrant

Attorney Slone also filed a motion to suppress all evidence obtained after the officer made contact with A. S., and dismiss the charges, on the grounds that the officer violated A. S.'s constitutional rights when the officer entered the private property without a warrant or emergency.

case dismissed

After Attorney Slone's motions were filed, the District Attorney agreed to dismiss the charges in their entirety, and the case was dismissed without any further court hearings.