Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Criminal Law Blogs -> JAABlog

Criminal Law

: JAABlog

CASES - Civil

By Jeffrey Ivashuk

Civil rights -- Qualified immunity -- Crime lab officials and employees were entitled to qualified immunity in connection with testing of plaintiff's blood samples to determine his blood alcohol level because facts alleged by plaintiff, viewed in light most favorable to him, do not show violation of constitutional rights -- Plaintiff alleged that state crime lab officials and employees violated his Fourth and Sixth Amendment rights by failing to reveal retest results, which showed blood alcohol concentration below .10 grams per 100 ml, in contrast to original test results which showed concentration above .10 grams per 100 ml and which supported ?per se? DUI charge -- Fourth Amendment claim for malicious prosecution was defeated where probable cause existed at time the per se DUI charge was initiated against the plaintiff, and, because a reasonably prudent person might conclude that the earliest test result was the most accurate, the retest results obtained nearly a year later did not negate that probable cause -- Plaintiff could not establish violation of Fourth Amendment right to compulsory process by showing that he was deprived of testimony, but must make some plausible showing of how the testimony would have been both material and favorable to his defense -- District court erred in holding that materiality test should be applied at the time of compulsory process violation rather than post-trial -- However, materiality test was not satisfied in this caseReported at 21 Fla...continue to full post

Full post as published by JAABlog on February 27, 2008 (boomark / email).