When residents of Texas are pulled over for suspicion of drunk driving there are certain things that most likely expect will happen before an arrest will be made. One of those things is that the driver will blow at least 0.08 in the course of a breathalyzer test. As the arrest of one Texas man illustrates, this is not always the case.
The man was pulled over in a different Texas city a little over a year ago after a police officer allegedly saw the man run a red light. According to law enforcement, the man took, and failed, a field sobriety test. Following that test the man was arrested.
Later, at the jail a breathalyzer test was administered. The man passed that test with flying colors when the level of alcohol that registered was 0.00. This was not the only test the man took that registered that result. A blood test also came back with the same findings. The blood test also showed no signs of the man ingesting drugs.
Despite those test results, a case against the man proceeded. The police department that arrested the man indicated that it was possible the man was not sober but rather under the influence of a drug that the blood test administered would not detect.
Recently that case was dismissed by the prosecution. The man’s lawyer said that the officer involved in the arrest did not make the correct call in arresting his client. Now that the case has been dismissed he can move onto the next task–clearing his arrest record.
Source: CBS Houston, “Man Arrested For Drunk Driving After Blowing 0.00 Into Breathalyzer,” Feb. 27, 2014