Bad Breathalyzers imperil 1,147 DUI cases

Philadelphia police have discovered that at least four Breathalyzer machines routinely used to test motorists for alcohol and drug impairment were improperly calibrated, throwing at least 1,147 current DUI cases into uncertainty.

"We screwed up, folks," Commissioner Charles Ramsey said this morning at a press conference where he was flanked by District Attorney Seth Williams and a small army of other bigwigs.

A defense attorney noticed the discrepancy and brought it to police attention in February, Ramsey said. Tests on the Department's eight Breathalyzer machines showed that four of them were improperly calibrated. Police initially thought the faulty calibration only affected about 400 cases. But as they tested the machines, they found more cases impacted - adding up, as of yesterday, to at least 1,147 cases dating from September 2009 through November 2010, Ramsey said.

Williams said his office already has notified some defendants and will send letters to the others to offer them retrials. The snafu comes at a time when court officials are crusading to unclog the courts and shorten a crippling backlog that keeps some cases in limbo for years.

A Pennsylvania State Police trooper who specializes in Breathalyzer calibration will visit Philadelphia today to test its eight machines. Until they're approved as correct, the city will not use them, Ramsey said.

"Our interest is justice, not merely convictions," Williams said.