Operating while intoxicated (OWI) charges in Michigan can carry a variety of serious consequences. Drivers accused of an OWI offense may serve time in jail. They have to pay court costs and large fines. They typically lose their driving privileges temporarily as well.
Pleading guilty to an OWI results in a criminal record and a sentence imposed by the criminal courts. Motorists who have a reason to fight their charges may find that investing in a thorough OWI defense strategy is better for their long-term personal recovery than entering a guilty plea to resolve the matter as quickly as possible.
In many cases, what looks like a drunk driving offense might actually have a medical explanation. What are some of the ways that a person’s medical challenges could lead to an OWI charge?
Symptoms that affect test accuracy
Some people have mental health challenges or neurological conditions that could impact how they manage the stress of field sobriety testing. Other people might have undiagnosed diabetes or rare medical conditions that compromise the effectiveness of roadside chemical testing.
In some cases, the symptoms that people present during a traffic stop can lead to them failing field sobriety or chemical tests. They might end up facing OWI charges when they were actually sober or well below the 0.080% limit for their blood alcohol concentration (BAC).
Treatments that affect test accuracy
There are a number of different medical treatment options that could make it appear as though a driver were under the influence when they actually were not. For example, patients following weight loss diets, such as the keto or paleo diet, could have acetone on their breath due to their bodies metabolizing fat. They could have a false positive result during breath testing.
Other times, medications that people take could affect test accuracy. Common asthma inhalers, for example, can cause false positives on a breath test. Medical records validating the medication that a person takes or the specialty diet that their physician recommended could raise a reasonable doubt about whether they were actually under the influence when they failed a chemical test.
Unique medical challenges can provide a reasonable explanation for why a person failed testing. Even those who have had nothing to drink could theoretically fail field sobriety tests or chemical breath testing due to their medical challenges.
Reviewing the state’s evidence can help OWI defendants find weaknesses in the state’s case and begin developing a defense strategy. An attorney can potentially present compelling medical evidence at trial, thereby raising a reasonable doubt about whether a driver actually committed an OWI offense.