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Urine Testing Atlanta DUI Cases

Posted by Richard Lawson | Jan 04, 2013 | 0 Comments

Have You Been Arrested For DUI in Atlanta Georgia and Have Submitted to Urine Testing?

As discussed previously, if you are arrested in this state for DUI, Georgia law requires you to submit to chemical testing of your breath, blood, or urine to determine the presence of alcohol or drugs.  Urine tests are not commonly requested as opposed to breath or blood tests.  Many times if a urine test is requested, it is in addition to another type of test such as breath or blood.  It is important to contact a DUI Lawyer in Atlanta Georgia as soon as you have been arrested.  You only have 30 days to file an appeal to save your drivers license.

Urine testing is usually used when a person is suspected of driving under the influence of drugs in Atlanta.  DUI Drugs in Atlanta can be as a result of an accusation of being under the influence of both legal and illegal drugs. Your Atlanta DUI Lawyer is well equipped to handle DUI Drug cases.  It is extremely difficult for the prosecutor to prove a DUI Drugs case, and as a result, an Atlanta DUI Attorney can very often successfully defend against DUI Drug Cases in Atlanta, GA.

Urine testing is handled in much the same way as blood testing. The State of Georgia has never created any rules or regulations for the manner or procuring, handling or testing of urine. The State still must prove the chain of custody of the urine sample in order to admit the results of the test into evidence. Chain if custody is one of several potential defenses your DUI Attorney in Atlanta GA will attempt. There are other Atlanta DUI Defenses that your Atlanta Georgia DUI Attorney will implement.

An Atlanta Georgia DUI lawyer will attack the State's ability to prove each of these elements. A DUI Lawyer in Atlanta Georgia will also have access to expert witnesses to challenge urine evidence as lacking in specific accuracy as opposed to blood testing.  You DUI Lawyer in Atlanta will argue that urine testing is inaccurate because every person metabolizes at different rates.  That is why blood testing is more accurate.  Blood testing is less prone to metabolite differences over the short period of time.

It is universally accepted that urine testing is the least reliable method of determining a person's blood alcohol concentration.  The National Safety Council's Committee on Alcohol and Drugs has even stated, “urinalysis of the urine for the purpose of determining blood alcohol is to be discouraged except under strictly controlled conditions.”  As a result, if urine is used as a chemical test of a suspected DUI driver's alcohol level, your DUI Attorney in Atlanta Georgia will very likely win that case.

Urine testing, as expected, measures substances leaving the body.  Your Atlanta DUI attorney will attack the results of this type of testing by arguing that the results only indicate the alcohol leaving your body at the time of testing, but does not indicate your level of impairment or condition while driving.  Alcohol is metabolized slowly and it takes almost two hours after drinking for alcohol to appear in your urine.

This could significantly affect the level of blood alcohol in your urine and be an inaccurate indicator of your actual level of impairment.  If you had several drinks many hours prior to testing and had not urinated since that time, a urine test may show a misleadingly high result.  However, if you had been drinking close in time to when you were stopped, and had been urinating regularly, the test may show a deceptively low result.  Of course your Atlanta DUI Lawyer will not challenge a low result.

The moral of the story is to always hire lawyers that know the court system in Atlanta, the science of chemical testing, and the DUI Laws in Atlanta.  Our office exclusively handles DUI Cases throughout Atlanta, Metro Atlanta, and all of North Georgia. We are here to help 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Contact us today for help and attention.  You have many choices of Atlanta DUI Attorneys.  The Atlanta DUI Lawyers at our office will provide you the best Atlanta DUI Defense.

About the Author

Richard Lawson

Managing Partner at Lawson & Berry:

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Georgia DUI Defense Attorneys

At the Law Office of Richard S. Lawson, we have offices conveniently located throughout metro Atlanta and throughout Georgia. If we do not have a convenient office, we will come to you. We practice throughout Metro Atlanta and North Georgia. If your case is in an area we do not serve, we will find you an attorney in your area free of charge. Our office is part of a State-wide network of Georgia DUI Lawyers. Contact us 24/7 for immediate legal help. Our attorneys are standing by. Your DUI Case will not defend itself. Your Best Georgia DUI Defense Begins Here!

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