Cain v. Colorado
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The issue this case presented to the Supreme Court was whether the results of a preliminary breath test ("PBT") for blood alcohol content were admissible for impeachment purposes. When the defendant is charged with driving either while under the influence of alcohol (DUI) or while ability impaired by alcohol (DWAI), the results of the PBT may not be used as evidence of guilt at trial. Whether the results of the PBT may nevertheless be used for impeachment purposes was an issue of first impression for the Colorado Court. In this case, the county court determined that although evidence that a PBT registered a positive result for the presence of alcohol was inadmissible to prove intoxication, that evidence could nevertheless be admitted for impeachment purposes if the defendant testified that he had not been drinking. The district court affirmed this decision. The Supreme Court concluded that ruling was erroneous: "[w]hile a police officer is authorized to conduct a PBT as part of the officer's investigation, we hold that based on the plain language of section 42-4-1301(6)(i)(III), the PBT results may not be used in any court action except as specifically provided in the statute itself." Thus, because the statute did not allow for using PBT results as impeachment evidence, the Court reversed the order of the district court and remanded the case to that court with instructions to return the case to the county court for further proceedings.
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