N.J. tests may be delayed for DUI-testing machine
TRENTON - Lawyers who argue that a new breath-testing machine is unreliable and should not be used in drunken-driving prosecutions agreed yesterday to test the machine, but asked the state Supreme Court to order the state or another group to pay for the testing.
TRENTON - Lawyers who argue that a new breath-testing machine is unreliable and should not be used in drunken-driving prosecutions agreed yesterday to test the machine, but asked the state Supreme Court to order the state or another group to pay for the testing.
The high court had set a deadline of yesterday for the defense attorneys to provide the name of an independent consultant to study the Alcotest machine, or forfeit their right to the testing.
Evan M. Levow, a Cherry Hill-based defense attorney, said the team asked the justices for more time to find a consultant, but still provided the name of one in order to meet the deadline. He declined to name the firm.
More than 10,000 drunken-driving sentences have remained in limbo while the case winds through the courts, and the testing could take several months longer.- Elisa Ung