The Defendant was driving on High Ridge Road in Boynton Beach when her vehicle left the road and crashed into a concrete wall. A husband and wife watching tv in their home ran out to the car to render aid. The Defendant was trapped under her steering wheel and bleeding heavily from her face. She was not wearing her seat belt and had smashed her head into the windshield. She told the female witness that she had been drinking and the witness could smell alcohol on her breath. When officers arrived, the Defendant was taken as a trauma alert to the Delray Beach Medical Center. An Officer with the Boynton Beach Police Department came to the hospital and read the Defendant her Miranda warnings and told her he was conducting a DUI investigation. She told him that she was speeding and in a hurry and that she doesn’t remember the crash. She also said she had been drinking wine. She consented to a blood test which yielded results of .109. Additionally, a medical blood test was taken which yielded results of a .101. The Firm moved to suppress the blood test due to the fact that it was requested by the officer based upon an odor of alcohol alone and a crash. Additionally, the officer who came to the hospital to question the Defendant had been charged with a violent crime and was being prosecuted by the State Attorney’s Office. The State agreed to the motion and then attempted to proceed with the medical blood test of a .101. The Firm then demanded a speedy trial and discussed potential problems with the medical blood test with the State Attorney’s Office. On the day of trial, the State dismissed the charge for Driving Under the Influence.
DUI & Criminal Division
