Office of public safety sniffs out bad breath tests

The state office of public safety blamed operator error, not faulty equipment, for invalid Breathalyzer readings that prompted several district attorneys to suspend using evidence from the devices in open cases.”The review identified a small percentage of breath test results that, due to operator error, were found to be invalid under Massachusetts regulations, which are more stringent than those set by the manufacturer,” Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS) Secretary Daniel Bennett said in a statement. “The invalid calibration test results did not stem from a malfunction with the breath test instruments themselves.”But the Massachusetts Bar Association urged Attorney General Maura Healey to order an independent investigation of the devices’ use in drunk-driving cases.”We believe drunk driving is a very serious problem, however, convictions need to be based on reliable and accurate evidence. The constitutional right to a fair trial has to be paramount,” association chief operating officer Martin Healy wrote in a letter to Healey.Essex District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett was among several district attorneys last week who suspended the use of Breathalyzer results as evidence in all open drunk driving cases after learning State Police and the Executive Office of Public Safety were reviewing the devices because of potentially faulty readings.Blodgett’s office said five cases in the northern part of the county had been identified as involving Breathalyzer evidence that was potentially invalid. None of those cases occurred in Lynn.Bennett released a statement Tuesday confirming that a review of 39,000 breath test results revealed about 150 incidents where the test administrator declared the results valid but where the Draeger 9510 breath-test machine had not been properly calibrated for use in Massachusetts.Bennett said the machines, however, were functioning properly. The device manufacturer has also provided a software patch to update the machines, Bennett said.”Motor vehicle operators and the law enforcement community must have faith that breath tests are accurate and reliable, and we have taken the steps necessary to make sure that is the case,” Bennett said in a statement.He said EOPSS was working with the appropriate district attorneys to “identify each individual whose breath test was affected by operator error, so that we can ensure that the operator errors did not unfairly impact any OUI prosecutions; and so that prosecutions of those suspected of operating under the influence can go forward based on all of the available evidence, including breath tests.”Blodgett’s office said they had received information from the state Tuesday afternoon and that the matter was under review.