State v. Ms. E. (2011)

Practice Area: DUI / DWI

Outcome: Acquitted on criminal DUI charges

Description: BAC: .122

Description:  Not Guilty / Complete Acquittal / DUI Arizona – State v. Ms. E. (Phoenix Municipal Court Case No. 4231721).  Ms. E. and her husband were vacationing in Arizona and were returning to their hotel from dinner.  Officers observed Ms. E.’s rental car to not have headlights.  Officers noted this was a nighttime driving cue and stopped Ms. E.  Ms. E. then participated in field sobriety testing.  Officers arrested Ms. E. and transported Ms. E to a DUI van where her blood was drawn.  Ms. E.’s. BAC was a .122.  Ms. E. was facing the minimum for a misdemeanor DUI.  At trial Ms. Castillo argued that Ms. E. was not impaired for driving by the alcohol she consumed and that because this was a rental car and the valet had not turned on the headlights, she did not have time to realize the lights were off given the officers had contacted her right outside of the restaurant parking lot.  Ms. Castillo further argued that Ms. E.’s demeanor and performance on the field sobriety tests were inconsistent with a .12 BAC and due to poor chromatography and a maintenance problem with the instrument used to test Ms. E.’s blood, the State’s blood result was over estimated.  The jury acquitted Ms. E. on all charges.