High-Tech Device Spells Last Call For Breathalyzer
Relying on computer software to determine a person’s blood/alcohol level, the Alcotest 7110 will likely replace the 50-year-old Breathalyzer test in New Jersey with both Middlesex County and Union County now using the Alcotest 7110 system. The new system is also used in New York, Pennsylvania, Alabama, California, and Massachusetts.
Deputy New Jersey state attorney general Steve Monson asserts that the Breathalyzer test is dependent on correct use by the operator and is often debated in court, while the Alcotest relies completely on infrared and fuel cell technology to more accurately gauge levels. “There is a lot of transparency,” he explains. “We are not trying to hide anything.”
However, the accuracy of the Alcotest is under debate in a Middlesex County court case with lawyers pointing to a 10 percent variation in results and demanding access to the Alcotest software in order to better review its accuracy.
In addition, the computer software was changed by the state when the Alcotest was first tested and found to be “scientifically reliable” by Camden County Superior Court Judge Francis Orlando Jr., reports Cherry Hill Attorney Evan Levow.
Abstracted by the National Law Enforcement and Corrections Technology Center(NLECTC) from the Newark Star-Ledger (NJ) (08/08/05); Lucas, Judith .
