Fresno DUI Attorney Blog: Science is our friend
Fresno DUI Attorney Jonathan Rooker believes science our friend when it comes to defendant DUI's. As a Criminal Defense and DUI Attorney, especially a criminal defense attorney in Fresno where DUI's are given out at such a high rate, Jonathan believes science and education are important for an attorney to understand when defending a DUI charge where facts prior to the stop are so important in determining blood alcohol content (BAC) at the time of driving.
Absorption of alcohol is a big factor. Alcohol isn't magic, it doesn't instantly travel from your esophagus into your blood. It travels the same route as other hydrophilic substances that are orally ingested. The alcohol enters the stomach where a small percentage 10-25% is absorbed through the stomach lining. Next, like other foods and liquids it exits the pyloric valve into the small intestine, where it is absorbed into the system. This is a process, and it is not a fast one. Alcohol is commonly absorbed into food that is consumed before, during, or after the consumption of an alcoholic beverage. As a DUI Lawyer, it is important that we understand the process, as to cross examine the states expert properly. In these circumstances, where alcohol is absorbed into the food, gastric emptying must occur before complete absorption of the alcohol into the blood stream can occur.
Government experts routinely testify in DUI Trials that Complete Absorption of alcohol occurs within 15 minutes of consumption. That would mean, that the stomach has emptied, also known as gastric emptying, has occurred. When viewed by logic, it would also mean that a person who eats a meal, drinks a beverage, or consumes a combination of both would have an empty stomach in less than 15 minutes. Anyone who has been sick, regurgitated their stomach contents hours after eating or drinking would understand this is not true. Yet, the government perpetuates these lies to help wrongly convict innocent people of DUI.
Science tells us that it routinely takes a couple hours to fully absorb the alcohol we consume. Science tells us that it can take up to 6 hours to fully absorb the alcohol. Science tells us that DUI conviction are routinely based on faulty opinions by so called government experts that are poorly trained, under education, and told how to testify. Science tells us that the medical community does not agree with the government experts.