Ms. Johnson represented our client in a jury trial before the Honorable Suzanna Upton. Ms. Kate Glasson was the Deputy District Attorney prosecuting our client. Our client had been charged with Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants (DUII). Our client had performed the standard field sobriety tests and had submitted to the breathalyzer test. The breathalyzer indicated a blood alcohol content (BAC) of .07 percent at the time she submitted to the test. A common area of dispute in cases where the breathalyzer result is close to the 0.8 standard is retrograde extrapolation. Since Oregon law asks what was a person's BAC at the time of driving and since most people are not submitting to the breathalyzer test until usually around an hour after driving, this opens the case to the possibility that the person's BAC was different at the time of driving compared to what the person was when she submitted to the test. This issue is generally referred to as retrograde extrapolation as we are using the information at the time a person submits to the test to determine what she was back at the time of driving. Usually, if the test result is at or above .08 it is the defense arguing this issue and if the test result was less than .08 the prosecutor argues the issue. Since our client had received a .07 result, Ms. Johnson focused the jury's attention on our client's performance of the field sobriety tests. These tests are often performed under less than ideal conditions and people are naturally very nervous at that time; therefore, understanding the officer's instructions is crucial to performing the tests. Ms. Johnson emphasized to the jury that our client was speaking English as a second language to help explain some of her performance on those tests. The jury returned a verdict of Not Guilty.

DUII - ORS 813.010 - carries up to 1 year of jail and a fine of up to $6,250.