Many Tampa DUI cases involve admission of blood test results against individuals. In short, yes. Florida Statute Section 316.1932(3) provides the basis for someone to have their own doctor conduct, RN or “other personnel authorized by a hospital to draw blood or duly licensed clinical laboratory director…” take their own independent test. There are several things to highlight about the Statute though.
First, the independent test is “in additional to the test administered at the direct of the law enforcement officer.” This stands in direct contradiction to the urban myth that if you request your own doctor to take your breath, urine or blood test, law enforcement cannot also ask you to take their own test. This urban myth is simply not true. It is clear this statutory provision is solely intended to provide folks the option to have an additional test performed. Obviously, a second test showing different results would be great evidence during a jury trial on a Tampa DUI for your defense.
Secondly, this provision requires law enforcement to avoid interfering with the accused’s opportunity to obtain the independent testing and timely providing them with phone access. As we have discussed throughout our Tampa DUI attorney blog, when the real world meets Florida statutes, unfortunately the burden usually falls on the accused. In a perfect world, the accused would be able to quickly call their physician to coordinate their second, independent test as soon as their blood was taken at the direct of law enforcement. Obviously, this is likely not going to occur in the real world and the delay will likely be explained by the State Attorney’s Office at trial that it is responsible for the positive results of the independent drug test, “as the drugs/alcohol left the accused’s body.”
Lastly, the nature of driving under the influence simply makes this portion of the Statute nearly impossible. Simply put, what doctor or registered nurse is prepared to withdrawal blood late in the evening/early in the morning, when the overwhelming majority of DUIs occur. Additionally, it would be almost impossible to quickly arrange a blood test, while under the custody of law enforcement. Like so many Florida statutes, while well intended, it practically frankly just does not work.
If you or someone you know has questions concerning their Tampa DUI, contact the Tampa DUI attorneys of Hackworth Law for a free case consultation. If you would like to contact one of our Tampa DUI attorneys immediately, please use the “contact us now” tab in the upper right hand corner of our website. We have handled thousands of criminal cases throughout the Tampa Bay Area including a wide variety of cases ranging from driving under the influence to murder. Thanks for taking the time to check out our Tampa DUI attorneys blog and we look forward to working with you.