{"id":855,"date":"2016-03-29T05:35:51","date_gmt":"2016-03-29T09:35:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.massachusettscriminaldefenselawyerblog.com\/?p=855"},"modified":"2016-03-29T05:35:51","modified_gmt":"2016-03-29T09:35:51","slug":"massachusetts-supreme-judicial-court-hear-arguments-whether-informed-right-council-apply-taking-breathalyzer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.delsignoredefense.com\/blog\/massachusetts-supreme-judicial-court-hear-arguments-whether-informed-right-council-apply-taking-breathalyzer\/","title":{"rendered":"SJC decision on right to counsel prior to a breath test could impact admissibility of breath test results"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will hear the case of Neary-French v. Massachusetts<\/em> over whether a defendant should be advised of his or her right to counsel prior to making the decision of whether or not to submit to a breathalyzer test. The 2003 amendment to G.L.c. 90, \u00a724 created the \u201c.08 or greater\u201d per se theory by which an OUI offense can be proven. The SJC will have to decide whether or not the decision to take a breath test is a critical stage of the criminal proceeding, as defendants are entitled to be advised of their right to counsel prior to making any decisions in the critical stages of a criminal proceeding. \u00a0Recently, Bob McGovern of the Boston Herald<\/a> wrote an Article about this case and how it has prosecutors concerned.<\/p>\n

In Massachusetts, in order to support a prima facie case for an OUI, the prosecution must prove three elements: (1) that the defendant was in physical operation of the vehicle; (2) that the defendant did so on a public way or place to which the public has a right of access; and (3) had a measurable blood alcohol content percentage of .08 or greater, or was impaired by the influence of intoxicating liquor. Before the 2003 amendment, the jury could draw a permissible inference that the defendant was under the influence at the time of the offense if the BAC was .08 or higher. The 2003 amendment adopted the per se theory that a defendant with a BAC level of .08 or higher is now considered to be legally intoxicated under the law, regardless of the level of impairment.<\/p>\n

A critical stage is one in which the defendant\u2019s rights could be sacrificed or lost. Before the 2003 amendment, the right to counsel did not attach because the Court did not consider the test a \u2018critical stage\u2019 in the criminal process and the assistance of counsel would create an undue delay in the administration of the test. There were reasonable safeguards in place to protect the defendant\u2019s right. The 2003 amendment removed defendant\u2019s safeguards and caused the breathalyzer to become a critical stage in the criminal process because the outcome of the test could possibly be the sole basis of a conviction.<\/p>\n

Continue Reading \u203a<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will hear the case of Neary-French v. Massachusetts over whether a defendant should be advised of his or her right to counsel prior to making the decision of whether or not to submit to a breathalyzer test. The 2003 amendment to G.L.c. 90, \u00a724 created the \u201c.08 or greater\u201d per […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-855","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-breathalyzer-testing"],"yoast_head":"\nSJC decision on right to counsel prior to a breath test could impact admissibility of breath test results — Massachusetts Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog — March 29, 2016<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court will hear the case of Neary-French v. 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