Vancouver police have been taking shortcuts in DUI cases by photocopying forms used to demonstrate that breathalyzer machines have been tested and are working properly.
Criminal lawyer Paul Doroshenko said at least 17 cases of 90-day driving suspensions have been tossed out because of shoddy paperwork provided by the Vancouver police department.
“I think every person who got (a driving suspension) in Vancouver should be entitled to a re-hearing based on that evidence,” Doroshenko said, noting the forms – known as calibration certificates – were likely included in the offence documentation of hundreds of drivers handed roadside driving suspensions between June and December.
The certificates are presented in court to show police have calibrated screening devices used in roadside breath tests every 30 days. Officers are supposed to fill out one form per device, but Doroshenko said his office realized the documents provided to their clients had been photocopied, down to the officer’s signature.
“(There’s) no assurance it’s been done properly, or that it’s even been done.”
Doroshenko said his office first argued the point last fall in front of the Superintendent of Motor Vehicles and lost, but got the attention of the lawyers at the provincial Ministry of Justice after filing a petition to appeal in B.C. Supreme Court.
Vancouver police spokesman Const. Brian Montague confirmed a policy complaint about the forms has been referred to the Vancouver police board and the Office of the Police Complaints Commissioner.
The forms in question are no longer in use.
Read more about the DUI cases that were tossed: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/cases+tossed+shoddy+paperwork/7871736/story.html#ixzz2J40WfNFf